The European Commission is preparing to ban fishing for bluefin tuna within EU waters to save the species from extinction.

	Bluefin tuna have been brought to the edge of extinction by French, Italian and Spanish fishermen

The failure of France, Italy and Spain to observe EU limits on tuna catches and to prevent illegal fishing has finally exhausted the patience of officials across Europe.

Just this week, French boats were filmed by conservationists illegally drift-netting for tuna in the Mediterranean.

And as the plight of Europe's most over-exploited fish species rose up the political agenda yesterday, Gordon Ramsay, the chef, said that he would remove bluefin from menus at his eponymous restaurants in Chelsea and at Claridge's and replace it with the sustainable yellowfin variety.

According to documents seen by The Daily Telegraph, the European Commission will next week table legislation closing bluefin tuna fisheries in the Eastern Atlantic and Mediterranean.

The Commission's plans come after EU fisheries ministers failed last month to agree on measures to protect tuna stocks which have been brought to the point of collapse by overfishing for "farms" in which wild fish are kept for export to Japan.

"Fishing opportunities for bluefin tuna... are deemed to be exhausted," states the commission document.

"In the absence of appropriate measures taken by the member states concerned... it is the commission's responsibility to close the fisheries for that stock."

Officials note that the proposed ban, which could take effect as early as June 10, will come midway through the tuna fishing season, when scientists believe catches will have already surpassed what would be a sensible quota.

There are still concerns that Italy or France might try to block the ban and that Europe's fishing ministers might clash on the measure at a meeting in Luxembourg on Jun 12.

Ben Bradshaw, Britain's fisheries minister, was infuriated by the EU's failure last month to enforce Common Fisheries Policy rules.

He said that British fishermen who cheated and fished over their limit had the numbers deducted from quotas in future years.

But, to date, French, Italian and Spanish bluefin tuna fleets had simply been carrying on regardless.

French fishermen, the worst culprits according to environmental campaigners, are said to have exceeded quotas by 30 per cent last year, sparking calls from Mr Bradshaw for France to be excluded until it has reached "payback".