Brussels, 13/06/2013 (Agence Europe) - Close on the heels of the Council of Ministers, on 11 June, the European Parliament's plenary adopted the draft regulation on monitoring of intellectual property rights (IPR) by customs authorities, as proposed by the European Commission in May 2011 (updated Regulation 1383/2003) to protect consumers against the risk of counterfeit goods and to protect companies against unfair competition from counterfeiters. The new regulation is part of the Commission's strategy to protect intellectual property rights and also part of its customs action plan to clamp down on counterfeiting. It boosts the legal framework for inspections of small parcels set by post that are suspected to contain counterfeit goods (CDs, clothes, medicines and the like), most of which are ordered by internet. It allows customs services to destroy the seized goods without requiring permission from a judge. The new regulation also deals in part with goods transiting within the EU, but this issue is the focus of the trademark legislation package unveiled by the Commission in March. EU Taxation Commissioner Algirdas Semeta welcomed the EP's vote, saying it will set an international standard for the protection of intellectual property rights by customs services and will protect the competitiveness of European companies in future years. (FG/transl.fl)