At the European Parliament’s plenary session in Strasbourg on Monday 21 October, MEPs debated the issue of the massive influx of products sold by trading platforms that have been established outside of the EU and their impact on the European market.
The elected representatives are calling for a greater number of controls and better use of the tools already available to the European authorities, such as the Digital Services Act (DSA).
The reactions in the Chamber were unanimous: the EU must get to work on controlling the “billions of parcels” that enter its territory every year, and “quickly”.
As well as posing a risk to consumers since they lack compliance with European standards, these products have a major impact on the EU’s economy and environmental objectives (see EUROPE 13507/15).
A number of MEPs have therefore called on the European Commission to “do more”, both to counter the unfair competition posed by the knock-down prices charged by these platforms, and to ensure the safety of buyers in the EU (see EUROPE 13505/20).
Some MEPs, such as Piotr Müller (ECR, German), noted “the importance of national control authorities” upon which “guarantees of product safety” entering European territory are based, and which should therefore be “assisted” more actively by the European Commission.
Others, such as Francesco Torselli (ECR, Italian), raised the issue of the impact on European companies, who are not able to escape regulation in the same way as Shein, Temu or Wish, thereby reducing the competitiveness of the EU.
Environmentalists fear that this easy access to cheap, environmentally unfriendly products offered on these platforms will have an impact on “the emergence of sustainable alternatives, particularly in the textile sector”, according to Saskia Bricmont (Greens/EFA, Belgian).
In his capacity as outgoing Commissioner for Justice and Consumers, Didier Reynders closed the debate by pointing out that several actions are already underway against Shein or Temu under the framework of the DSA, and that the European Commission is considering solutions that are specifically based on customs reform and the lifting of the exemption from customs duties for parcels under €150, which many MEPs and some Member States are calling for (see EUROPE 13491/3). (Original version in French by Isalia Stieffatre)