Pablo ARIAS ECHEVERRÍA

Policy topics Pablo ARIAS ECHEVERRÍA is active on

What Pablo ARIAS ECHEVERRÍA has said (62)

• 2026-06-17 “President, commissioner, our schools and parks should be safe, but the digital space is less safe. For far too long, we have allowed a whole generation to grow up in a space that was not designed for them, where there's anxiety, depression, pornography, cyberbullying, and worse. All of this is just 1 click away. Behind a screen, there is not just content. There are algorithms which are designed to capture attention, keep you online, and to shape your behavior, condition you. Today, we don't look for content. The content seeks us out. Of course, there are benefits of the Internet and social media, but there are risks too. We must, therefore, not, fall into false traps. We must not allow companies to self regulate, and we must not just have, age verification, which doesn't work, or parental controls, which doesn't work. We must not believe false promises, based on simple solutions. We must face this issue. Is it the right way forward to ban social media for under sixteens? No. Instead, we must have a proportionate balanced approach, which gives opportunities to young people without depriving them of the Internet world. So we need to protect minors. That is a shared responsibility of platforms, users, and it's also, the responsibility of political officials. For you, but it really causes problems.”
  Age restrictions on children's access to social media
• “If the market is safe, then the consumer has no reason to feel that they're not protected so far. At this point, consumers are consuming on platforms where they believe that what they're buying is products that are in line with regulations and are therefore safe. But that's not the reality. That's not true. So what we need to do is see how we can ensure one, that we have a safe market for our consumers, and two, that we can ensure that when a consumer buys something. They don't have to worry about whether or not that product might harm them. Because, as I say, those products need to be safe and advertising needs needs to be true. It needs to be accurate. We need to ensure that when there is an advertisement on social media, online, in any media, in any form of communication, we need to ensure that that advertisement can ensure that this is a product that is accurately advertised. It's in line with regulations. This is fundamental. Otherwise we won't be doing our job. And this is something that I think should be included in a review of acts like the CPC or the Digital Fairness Act.”
  EU restrictions on unfair commercial practices
• “Thank you. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First of all, I'd like to thank our experts. He's done an excellent job. And what he said covers many of my questions. But there are. I do still have some doubts. So we talked about funding and financing, of course. But financing, of course, has to be secured. We need some money for that. And clearly the question of staff is very important when it comes to implementing this plan, which is very important for this reform process. We also have to bear in mind the fact that what we need is effective controls on what's coming in more than 4000, 4.6 billion packages coming in below this threshold of €50. And they're not covered. And it would be impossible to cover them and to fully understand what is coming in, or to address those packages with other standards without endangering our own producers, factories or indeed consumers. So within the financing, as well as the proposed increase in the budget, do we actually I understand there is a roadmap, but I'm sure you've got some more information about this, about the following points. First of all, the technology which would be used here. As Miss Rapini said on training and education of staff so as to ensure that they could use this technology efficiently so as to enable them to monitor what's coming across our borders. And at the same time, we also have to establish what is legal, what's acceptable. We can't always identify that. So if you could perhaps expand on that issue. So resources, personnel or staff financing so as to ensure that the packages can be checked. Obviously you can't check all packages, but it's important if we are able to check a large number of packages that would dissuade people from sending in non-compliant merchandise, which might pose a safety issue for our consumers, as well as posing a problem in terms of competitiveness for our businesses. Thank you.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “As president Cavazzini said, we've seen a lot of American companies who have, in fact, been telling us that the DMA is a very good law promoting competition in the marketplace. And therefore, I think to make the market attractive to talent is very important, and I think we're going the right direction there. But we and it also promotes innovation even though we're accused of the contrary. I think there's a lot of talented and there's a lot of companies that have huge potential in the digital area, and this kind of regulation makes them capable of achieving that, of realizing that potential. So we have to make a situation where all those who want to offer their goods and services on the market, Europe can do so with fair and balanced rules for all. I think this is essential and I think that it's our market. We should have our rules, and it's essential to have rules like the DMA, which have to be complied with. And I don't think we should take any step back in this and in its enforcement. And I think the new commission, with the with the result and the conclusion of the ongoing investigations, has to show that we're serious about enforcing these rules that we've adopted. And that will be very strict about this. Thank you.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “Well, thank you very much. Thank you very much for the question. And what I would like to say above all, is that the best way to allow for markets to function more effectively with this getting rid of protectionism is to strengthen the internal market. But undoubtedly the most. The problem is protectionism, protectionism and that fragmentation with 27 different member states. And I think if we're to move forward with a single market, we need a more profound, a deeper single market. It is the response to the various problems that we confront. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Uh. I'd like to thank the commission for the presentation you've given us on this topic. I think it's a rather serious topic. And I agree with Crystal on the DSA. It's important to have legislation such as the DSA. And what we are seeing now is that controversies cell an algorithms push them. So when it comes to the protection of minors, some people think this is fun. And they have said that, well, what kind of perturbed mind can create tools to to use AI to sexualize images? They have no limit, as we've seen. And I insist some find this funny or comical, but the damage that has been done to minors on social media is something that we already know all too well. And we can't allow for this existing damage to increase as a consequence of applied artificial intelligence, which uses algorithms to promote whatever those people find to be funny. And beyond a joke, this is extremely serious. So I put another question on the table for the commission. We once spoke about the need for identifiability while guaranteeing anonymity on the web. I think that's important in order to dissuade people who will do online what they wouldn't do offline in the real world. So perhaps Commission, could you shed some light on that? Because by using that supposed freedom of expression. We could have legislation for the digital arena. And I say things very clearly. I'm still taking note as to what these people are doing in the digital world, and about the lack of limits that they have and the need that we have to continue to working on this legislation that can protect the weakest. But but most of all, protect our principles and values at the European level.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you. President. In 2023. We celebrated 30 years of the single market. In this time, we've tried to unify it and simplify it, but there's still a lot to be done. And we know this. Mr. Draghi and Mr. Letta worked on this as citizens and businesses were involved in this. And we see in the figures in 15 years we've gone from 21%, um percent of GDP to 13. Um, we can no longer support the barriers that we've seen and we now have to react. We have an opportunity to work on our market and our competitiveness. Commissioner, this will imply that you bring down the terrible ten barriers that you've referred to for the market. And the goal is to ensure an attractive ecosystem for our young people. Our businesses, particularly SMEs, and for startups and scale ups and for European talent so that they can fulfil their potential in our market, on our territory. This strategy is the answer to the question that was posed a number of years ago. Um, whether, um, the Draghi and Letta reports were going to whether they were just a snapshot or a commitment. Uh, we will be looking very closely at how things go forward. Commissioner, we will support you in implementing the strategy. But it takes two to tango, as the British say. Actually, it takes three. Uh, you need the couple and the music. The music that we're hearing today sounds nice. Parliament is with you. But you also have to ensure that council comes along as well. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “(15:55:14 – 15:57:42): Thank you very much, Er. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First of all, thank you very much to Amazon for being here. And, well, what I want to make clear is the following. The representative said that you do what you do because it makes commercial sense. That's true. If it made, without that, you probably wouldn't comply with our standards. For years, Amazon has been asked here because they have products which don't comply with standards could be potentially dangerous. In general, the rule is that you try I say try to comply with the rules. I like Amazon. I like it as a brand, and I like it as a consumer. You have to work to earn our trust, but you have the trust of a lot of businesses, not all, but many. And SMEs, even those including those with a good reputation, sell their products across this platform. I'm not here to defend Amazon. I don't represent them. That's not what I'm here for. But platforms in general, including Amazon, have to take more responsibility about their products, particularly when they could potentially could be dangerous. I use Amazon, but I don't use AliExpress or Temu or Shane. I but I haven't had problems with Amazon, although more vulnerable users may have had difficulties. Efforts have to be made. You can do better, but I think putting you in the same basket as those other 3 platforms from other countries, I think, would be going too far and wouldn't be fair. So that's just something that I wanted to make clear. Can you do better? Yes. Can we do better as well? Yes. Undoubtedly. We all have to take more rods more responsibility, but I don't think they should be placed on any the same level as AliExpress, Xi'an, and Taimu. And, again, they can do better, though.”
  Liability for online marketplaces
• “Thank you very much, President, Commissioner. A successful agreement would prioritise compromise and competitiveness. A single market and the environment. The climate. That is what we need. Our market needs this kind of structure. If we are to achieve the gain, the objectives that we want to in terms of climate. We need to abandon these chaotic UN harmonised provisions which prevail across the Member States. Here we are talking about the automobile sector and the member States. Industries are in the midst of major transition and transformation. They need clear targets so that this sector can become one of the driving forces of the European economy. We in the EPP believe in technological neutrality, and we believe in making sure that the models that we are applying protects the environment, but does not impose additional No bureaucratic burdens on industry, especially SMEs. So this is the blueprint that we should be following. And the Commission should be balancing the environmental and industrial aspects and should be trying to reconcile competition with climate targets. It's only in making responsible policies such as this, the rule that we will be able to both support industry and protect the climate. We need a strong and competitive market which listens to industry and at the same time focuses on environmental protection. Therefore, we seek to achieve an ambitious agreement. Thank you to the rapporteurs. **Nicolae ȘTEFĂNUȚĂ @Co-Chair: Thank you. Next up, Mr. Maran.”
  Powertrain choice: EV-only pathway vs. equal support for hybrids, e-fuels, H2
• “Madam president. Madam Vice president of the Commission. Miss Rivera, the European Union in the last parliamentary term gave us a decisive step forward in terms of the adoption of a number of digital acts to put some order into our market. The Digital Markets Act is one of those steps forward. And it is not just a technical matter, but a political commitment based on a necessity. Several years later, The issue here isn't legislating. It's about proper implementation of the law. Gatekeepers have a specific responsibility, not just because of their size, but because of their ability to set conditions for access to our market. In many cases, and this can limit European businesses ability to grow and to be more competitive. This is a challenge for European users as well, because they face certain challenges, and therefore the DMA must never be understood by these organisations as suggestions. The DMA is compulsory, so its proper implementation is essential. We cannot allow our credibility to be at risk. Now we have started putting orders to our digital market and we must not stop there. We must continue doing this in the interest of our citizens and all those who want to consume products and services in the EU so that there is equality. We must provide legal certainty. And today is not the day that we're going to stop doing that. Our market, our rules. The Commission has all the tools required to provide for proper implementation, and these tools must be used. Complying with our rules is not optional. The DMA must be complied with and that is a condition. This is well reflected in the resolution. And so my group, the EPP, will support it. Thank you.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “Thank you very much, Madam President. Commissioner, the European measures against cyberbullying are are not commensurate with the gravity of the situation. They do not rise to the occasion. The the cyberbullying plan tries to clearly define the problem. We have to offer clear solutions that are decisive. Ireland has shown us the way. And Jackie Fox, Coco's mother's valiant speech and testimony encourages us to do something about this. I listened to her a few weeks ago and we were all extremely moved in the chamber, it is clear that we're not doing enough, as was mentioned in the previous plenary. We want to continue the legacy of Coco's law. We need harmonisation of criminal law. We need to impose obligations on platforms. We need penalties if the rules aren't respected. Cyber bullying knows no borders. Inaction is not a solution. We have to take action on a European level. Let us harness Jackie's example so that what happened to Coco never happens to anyone else. Thank you very much, Vice President Picerno. Thank you very much, president. Online harassment and cyber bullying have to lead to consequences.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you very much. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Thank you. Well, first of all, Crystal, thank you very much. And to all the shadows as well. Thank you for the work you've been doing and that you're going to continue doing. It's very important. And this is an excellent foundation, an excellent beginning when it comes to protecting minors online and focusing on article 28 of the DSA. Now we talk about social media, but instant messaging is also a serious problem. Whatsapp signal on telegram A good examples there we can see content being sent and there are many minors who are manipulated. And the cyberbullying, grooming, harassment of minors and also pornographic content being spread. Age verification also should apply in that case. And having said that, I would like to see a specific mention for these mechanisms for instant messengers in order to protect minors online. I'd like to mention for that.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you. Thank you very much. President. Commissioner, the welfare that were enjoying stability, stability, welfare and prosperity, which has characterized the European Union, is under threat right now. We find ourselves with a very uncomfortable reality. The project that we've built depends on our will to be able to move forward in the future. With these challenges, we are to provide solutions and the single market is the implement with a market of 450 million consumers. That's our strength. Undoubtedly, the most important thing is the single market. It is the cornerstone of our strength as well. But we have a lack of joint will. And for that reason, we have to visit this. And particularly we have to look at the protectionism of member states, 25 different regulatory frameworks. And national legislation creates huge, huge bureaucratic burden for SMEs, for companies as well. 333 years of single market. Once again, we're returning to those issues which have been impediments in the past, but we have to be very speedy. Right now, the world stage right now. And the situation that prevails is a moment that we ought to really act in a concerted fashion. We need single, simple regulation implemented on an equal footing by all, and we have to push forward with innovation. Uh, our SMEs have to be part of all of this as well. Research talent, all of these things are absolutely key in order to protect our consumers. This is relevant particularly for the youngest, because they want a future, a future which isn't full of doubt and isn't shadowed by uncertainty. So thus we must move together. Concertedly.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Muchas gracias. Comisario. I'm going to speak in Spanish, if you don't mind. Thank you very much for joining us in this committee. Especially on a day like today when there is so much going on in the run up to Christmas. And that makes it very difficult for us to match up our agenda so that you could join us. But nonetheless, I think it's a privilege to have you here with us and thank you for that. You mentioned many things. The 2030 consumer agenda, I think, is where we need to focus things. There are a lot of topics on the table looking at consumer rights. We have rights in the digital sphere and then we're gradually focusing on minors online. That is one of the issues which I think is a priority for this committee. And it's also become a priority for the Commission and for the Parliament. So I think that we need to work hand in hand to ensure that we can work effectively in order to protect minors online. So from that perspective, I think that the own initiative report that was adopted last week, we have some of the authors of it present with us today was a good starting point for this Parliament. Second question that I wanted to put to you is about the customs reform we're currently facing. The usual problem. We see that we are still having a lot of packages arriving from third countries via these platforms, and regardless of the. Regardless of the defense or protection that is put in place through the consumer rights legislation, it's not being properly enforced because the platforms simply evade those procedures. We don't know whether these products comply, we don't know whether they're safe. And we have very little information as to whether or not they're going to harm the consumers, who subsequently then have to try to resolve these things. But we're always chasing after this. What can we do in order to speed things up so that we can better protect consumers? How can the Commission be more agile in this regard, so that we're not waiting to catch up with the reforms to deal with this problem? Because we've already seen that it's a serious problem. Thank you.”
  Liability for online marketplaces
• “Thank you very much. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Thank you for the report. It's quite true that one of the important questions will have to address during this period of Parliament are the series of omnibuses. We're talking about the digital omnibus, which is divided into two parts. But the part we're talking here about here will have a great impact on our work. So it's important for us to understand in depth what the implications of this are. So as to ensure whether this is worth doing or not. I think that in many cases it is worth doing, but it's important that simplification go in the right direction, supporting innovation while at the same time securing and maintaining transparency and security, something which has always been an important feature of the digital market in the European Union. And a lot of our current legislation targets that as well. So I would like to ask whether what's being planned here, what the Commission intends to achieve with this omnibus. This is my first question. Is that the right road forward? Secondly, questions on data protection legislation. This law was quite controversial when it was being discussed, and it's one of the more complex pieces of legislation. So is there a risk of us ending up in a situation where there's no consensus to move forward is this legislation clearly does have shortcomings. There are defects, but I think overall it's worked pretty effectively.”
  GDPR
• “Thank you. President. Commissioner. 4.6 billion billion packages were ordered online and entered the EU in 2024, 91% from China. This endangers our citizens and and puts our companies at a clear disadvantage. The giant Chinese online platforms offer huge amounts of products at minimal prices delivered to consumers doorsteps. How do they do it? Through production that is subsidized in their countries, and through a form of logistical magic that allows them to enjoy exemptions on import. The solution would be to eliminate the €150 customs duty exemption. That would be a good step in the right direction of having stricter customs rules. The European industry needs to be able to be able to compete on a level playing field, and our consumers have a right to protection of their health and their data. We can no longer allow gaps in our legislation to be taken advantage of in this way. Whatever the origin of products in the EU, it should be meeting our legislation and our standards. How is it possible that we see all of this advertising on social media, through influencers and online platforms of products that are illegal or do not meet our standards? When will we realize that what is cheap can actually cost us very dearly? Children dying from accidents caused by faulty toys. For instance, there are no easy answers to complex questions, but we need to continue to work to deal with this and solve it as soon as possible.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “Thank you Chair, I'm going to speak in Spanish. First I should like to thank our experts who came here today throughout the course of our week where we're focusing on disabilities and just take note of what they have given us by way of input. I think in this European Parliament now for a very long time we have really been factoring in, perhaps not always, perhaps not at every moment, but trying to mainstream considerations of persons with disability. And I'm sure in large part thanks to the excellent work that these experts are doing. Second, the first expert I believe, if I'm not mistaken it was her, that the issue of disabilities is factored in from the very outset as our colleague has just stated, Miss Barley. There is not an increase in the investment in the infrastructure and this is the same with digital aspects. If we do it from the very outset then we don't have to adjust later to make it a reality. I think that's something that we always have to keep front and center in our thinking. Also when it comes to what was stated by our expert from the SNCB, it's true that transport of course in the previous legislative period we looked at this when it comes to accessibility but we have to keep in mind as well that accessibility should be uniform across the EU when it comes to the platforms. This is something that is behind schedule. If you have an individual who has a psychological issue would still find barriers to taking a train. So this is something I think that we could send to the TRAN committee by way of input so that we can continue to factor this in. I'm sure they do but we always need to have this awareness and continue to communicate this awareness to them at all times. Thank you.”
  Gender roles, equality and inclusion
• “So we have to see whether that dovetails with this push for simplification, what effects we can expect as implementation is rolled out. So will simplification lead to us creating new problems. So that's pretty much what I wanted to ask about. We need guarantees for security for our consumers and companies, our businesses. Clearly, internet giants have also represented a threat to our market, and they were able to run amok in our markets, do whatever they wanted to some extent. So we have to ensure that we enable our companies, our businesses to remain and become more competitive. But if we have too much red tape, too many standards which they have to comply with, there's a risk of fragmentation of the market. That's something else I'm worried about. So amongst all those points, those issues, including fragmentation, are the things which bother me most. So the internal market must be just that when it comes to digital sector, it must be able to reach its full potential for our businesses. While non-European businesses which want to operate within a market have to comply with our standards. So let's see. Let's see if we can achieve what's been presented here. But clearly this is something which we have to explore in greater depth so as to ensure we don't make any. Wrong decisions. Thank you very much.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “Thank you very much, Madam President. Vice president. For years now, we've been talking about the advantages and the challenges of the single market. This is a matter of urgency today, and it's always the same debate. How do we actually make it work properly? We now have tangible signs of our political commitment bearing fruit. One Europe, one market is our slogan. And alongside that, we have a historic agreement between council, commission and Parliament signed in Cyprus, which will be the beginning of a complete single market, a strong single market. We very much hope rather than a failure. That is certainly not what we want. I want to say that I share the ambition. I'm on board with that. But I think that the process would be stronger if we had greater implication of this Parliament before the agreement is reached. We've said this many, many times. We want to make sure that we really come back to competitiveness, that we move forward together. There are various obstacles in the single market for instance, protectionism, excessive protectionism by some member states. Mrs. von der Leyen the president did not talk about this today. And this is an issue also for council. And council is not taking part in this debate. That is regrettable. We have a road map. That's fine, but we also need to make sure that the road map yields tangible and measurable results. So greater integration, less fragmentation action rather than just words and a single market rather than 27 different national markets, foreseeability rather than uncertainty and fewer obstacles and hurdles. So this has been said, and I now call upon the commission to move down that road and also make sure that the Parliament supports this endeavour.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “I would like to ask you two additional things. So first of all, interoperability, technological interoperability. As you said, this is an important European issue. And we decentralized rather than decentralized. Some years ago it was fashionable to decentralize these things. But we're moving back towards centralization now. I think it's essential importance. There'll be enormous quantities of data using this technology, and we have to ensure that we can use this effectively, um, with a customs relevant format. When it comes to funding, we also have to bear in mind how that will be worked out. So I understand that this is a study which the commission asked for. It's not the commission explaining about the ins and outs of the study. Unfortunately, we haven't got the commission. I would like to have heard what the commission had to say about it. So we could have learnt a lot from what the commission has to say about it. They could have set out their arguments regarding what said in the report. So I would like to have heard that in the debate. Thank you.”
  Interoperability requirements for digital platforms
• “I would like to ask you two additional things. So first of all, interoperability, technological interoperability. As you said, this is an important European issue. And we decentralized rather than decentralized. Some years ago it was fashionable to decentralize these things. But we're moving back towards centralization now. I think it's essential importance. There'll be enormous quantities of data using this technology, and we have to ensure that we can use this effectively, um, with a customs relevant format. When it comes to funding, we also have to bear in mind how that will be worked out. So I understand that this is a study which the commission asked for. It's not the commission explaining about the ins and outs of the study. Unfortunately, we haven't got the commission. I would like to have heard what the commission had to say about it. So we could have learnt a lot from what the commission has to say about it. They could have set out their arguments regarding what said in the report. So I would like to have heard that in the debate. Thank you.”
  Interoperability requirements for digital platforms
• “Thank you. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Uh. First of all, I'd like to thank the commission for this study. It's very important. And really, when it comes to the work of this Parliament, it's quite important because in April 2024, this Parliament adopted or voted in favor of a reform of the current legislation, going from a directive to regulation where we had over 400 votes in favour and around 90 against. So the vast majority of the Parliament voted in favour of a regulation which hasn't actually taken flight because of the change in Parliament. Now, in the report you presented today, we can see that the results in the negotiations for the Parliament amending the Commission's proposal are reflected. So I would like to ask you, after listening to what you had to say, whether the balance that was reached on the 28th, 23rd of April 2024, in the Parliament on the proposal for regulation is sufficiently balanced. And I think it is, especially after having listened to what you had to say as well. Thank you.”
  EU political integration
• “Thank you very much. President. Vice president. We thought that our legislation was suited to improving public markets and tackling corruption, but the proof has been in the pudding. It was not up to scratch. And we need, therefore to dismantle excessive bureaucracy, but also improve the whole structure so that we have a much fairer, more transparent and more effective procedure which will help us to tackle corruption. We mustn't be simplistic in our approach. There are those who simply focus on the cheapest price for awarding contracts, as if cheap meant good, and as if cheap meant transparent. Nothing could be further from the truth. We want quality, we want innovation, and we want innovation. And we want intellectual property to be treated with integrity. We therefore do need to reform our our provisions and move away from the idea of awarding contracts to the cheapest bidder so that we prioritise SMEs innovation and ultimately our citizens, because they expect public markets to work properly and to deliver quality public procurement markets, which function properly, should become a quality tool, a lever which provides transparency, traceability, quality, respect for patents and intellectual property, and ensures that European money is invested in European projects which deliver for everybody and tackle corruption. This is how we will be able to regain the trust of our citizens in our institutions. Thank you. **Nicolae ȘTEFĂNUȚĂ @Chair: Thank you. Mr. Bischoff has the floor.”
  Accounting and auditing of EU budget
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish. So I give you a second just to put your head on. Okay. First, I'd like to thank the commission for this 20 minutes of explanations of the DMA. And I also applaud the commission because it's not easy to enforce a set of rules which is no innovative and and progressive as this. And even though I always think things can be done better, it's still a great job of work. And I say this with respect and commendation. It's true that we've been applying this set of rules for one year. And as President Cavazzini said in Washington, we received a lot of complaints and pressure, both from the administration and from the new administration, and indirectly. And I think it was clear that the message was coming from there, from the American corporate corporations, the so-called gatekeepers. And the first thing I'd like to say is that it would be great to see more European companies that were gatekeepers as being a gatekeeper. It just means you have to comply with a set of rules that are in favor or favor the market and competition. So I don't think it's something negative, but quite the opposite. Regarding the Commission. The Commission has got these ongoing investigations. There's some that were being done by the old commission, which are continuing to be worked on, and it'd be good if they were all completed. But I'm not entirely optimistic about this.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “Thank you very. Much. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Buenos dias.Good morning. Firstly, to all the speakers. I think this first panel has been very interesting to listen to from my point of view. Obviously, we welcome the single market strategy that's been presented. There's a few points that I'd like to highlight above of SMEs. Smes has been mentioned repeatedly. I see SMEs are those who are mostly affected by the current situation of the single market, and also it would be SMEs who would benefit from a successful implementation of the strategy. But there's one point that's not been mentioned here, which is succession. So succession between current owners and those who inherit, perhaps the children or not. One of the major problems that SMEs face is that people decide to, to sell their business or to hand over their business, and there's issues that have an impact on the fragmentation of the market. And so succession of SMEs would be important. Could the Commission say anything about that? Will that be taken into account when we try and make the single market more attractive? Now, I think we've all welcomed the letter and the Draghi reports. But obviously. Then are they just a snapshot or. Of the market or are they a commitment to actually doing something about it. Is the Commission committed to doing so? Is the council on line with this strategy? You know, it takes two to tango, as people say. So it wouldn't be two. It would be three in this case. But is there a commitment from all institutions to move forward with the strategies, then obviously a commitment to digitalization, competitiveness and support for consumers as well that have mentioned I think is very important. But with those key questions, succession for SMEs and and is this a firm commitment or and is the council in line with the single market strategy.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “(14:42:32 – 14:44:18): Thank you very much, sir. If I may, I would like to welcome Mister Mark Un Harbold who is behind me, and he used to be the president and the chair of this committee. Just to say hello to him, he's right there. Thank you very much, Commissioner. A year ago, the Commission presented the single market strategy. It clearly identified the main barriers that continue to hold back the single market, the so-called terrible 10. As I have said before, and I repeat today, the biggest barrier remains protectionism by member states. A few weeks ago in Parliament's plenary session in Espresberg, you noted that around 70% of the work lies with the member states. I agree. But the European institutions must also continue to play an active role in taking these barriers. With that in mind, I would like to focus on one of the initiatives announced in the strategy, the Single Market Barriers Prevention Act. Its presentation is planned for the third quarter of 2027 on the basis of an assessment of the effectiveness of the existing preventive instruments. Commissioner, what concrete measures is the Commission considering to ensure that this instrument can effectively prevent new national barriers from emerging? And how will you make sure that it delivers real results and is not undermined by regulatory frame fragmentation that already exists today? Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you very much. President. Commissioner. In 2023, we celebrated the 30th anniversary of the single market. The building of this union with the free circulation of people, goods and capital reflects the values that we share. And this is a project that has become the beacon of the European economy. But there are also shadows, shadows that we need to dissipate. And the drug and letter reports made those very clear. We need to be competitive, yes, but we have a very fragmented market. We need to be innovative, but we seem to put obstacles in the way of our SMEs start ups and scale ups, and that undermines what we try and do. There are also administrative burdens that slow down the growth of our businesses. We want a single market, but we have an excess of rules which are unequal right across the single market. There's too much national protectionism as well. The current global situation means that we need to deal with these shadows in the single market diligently and with determination. It's not a simple task. We need simplification. Yes, we need less bureaucracy. We need to make it easier to finance private initiatives in terms of innovation. And we also need to attract and retain talent. We need fewer rules, but we need rules that are the same right across the single market. We need the same level of guarantee right across the single market as well. Legal certainty. We need to have the necessary level of ambition we in the Member States, so that we can do take the appropriate action here. Now, Commissioner, the letter and Draghi reports we saw those as snapshots. But they're also a commitment. They are for us as the EP, and I hope they are for the Commission as well. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First of all, I'd like to thank our experts. He's done an excellent job. And what he said covers many of my questions. But there are. I do still have some doubts. So we talked about funding and financing, of course. But financing, of course, has to be secured. We need some money for that. And clearly the question of staff is very important when it comes to implementing this plan, which is very important for this reform process. We also have to bear in mind the fact that what we need is effective controls on what's coming in more than 4000, 4.6 billion packages coming in below this threshold of €50. And they're not covered. And it would be impossible to cover them and to fully understand what is coming in, or to address those packages with other standards without endangering our own producers, factories or indeed consumers. So within the financing, as well as the proposed increase in the budget, do we actually I understand there is a roadmap, but I'm sure you've got some more information about this, about the following points. First of all, the technology which would be used here. As Miss Rapini said on training and education of staff so as to ensure that they could use this technology efficiently so as to enable them to monitor what's coming across our borders. And at the same time, we also have to establish what is legal, what's acceptable. We can't always identify that. So if you could perhaps expand on that issue. So resources, personnel or staff financing so as to ensure that the packages can be checked. Obviously you can't check all packages, but it's important if we are able to check a large number of packages that would dissuade people from sending in non-compliant merchandise, which might pose a safety issue for our consumers, as well as posing a problem in terms of competitiveness for our businesses. Thank you.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Firstly, I'm picking up on what the speakers have said. I've taken good note of what has been said. And I'm one of those who thinks that nobody has a magic recipe on how to address protection of minors. And adolescents, uh, has a lot of data at their disposal. And, um, we've seen a 300% increase in. Mental issues. There are professionals who don't link that exclusively with screen use, but there is a clear impact. And I also. Like the idea that they've raised about regulation. One question that I've. Noted, which I think is dissuasive is, um, something that was addressed under the, uh, issue of age verification, uh, education as well. There is a third one as well, which I've talked about with the commission and some members of this committee, which is identifiability, um, because of questions of anonymity. Now, when it comes to grooming, if we have the ability to I.D. individuals using social networks, that could be extremely dissuasive for those who are trying to do things that they shouldn't be in the area, for example, of grooming, but other areas as well. We haven't heard much about artificial intelligence. I think everybody's talking about it at the moment, and there will be a step to be taken with regard to that. I'd like to thank Miss Mochizuki as well, because I thought your contribution was great. Make it safer is one thing. Making it better is another thing. And I'd add that the commission's working on it. We are as well. And what we need to do is keep on listening to you so that we can learn the lessons, do our utmost, and take action as soon as possible. Thank you.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you very much. Thank you. President, vice president, madam Minister, against a difficult geopolitical context. And, uh, we need to become leaders and make sure that this becomes competitiveness. 15 years ago, we accounted for 20%, 21% of world GDP. Now it's less than 15%. And according to the IMF, the trend is going downwards between now and 2030. We cannot avoid current and future problems, despite the fact that we have this potential to harness more than 400 million citizens. We are going forward, but we've got our foot on the brake. As Mrs. von der Leyen said, the world order is weakening and we cannot keep internal barriers because they are also a consequence of the protectionism of the member states. And, as the IMF says, this is the equivalent of a 45% customs tariff and 110. For services, the first figure was goods. Now, it's not just about reacting. If we want to be competitive, we have to simplify, reduce red tape, especially through the 28th regime and a single energy market and financial market. We also have to look at connectivity innovation and to attract investment. And in this way, the Commission plans will become a reality and will have one Europe, one market. We have to make sure that we no longer have our foot on the brake, but on the accelerator, and have a market based on legal certainty, with crystal clear rules that are compatible with competitiveness so that we can maintain an appeal talent, so we can keep people here so that we can grow and that businesses can develop, including SMEs and young people.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish now. I'd like to share my opinion on the report. I think this report is necessary. We have supported it from the very beginning as we understand that this is a very common problem and we all agree that this problem exists. It's true that the digital world provides many opportunities, many good things, many benefits. We all benefit from it, but it's not free from risks, including the risks we have identified. I think these are a growing problem that we need to address with the greatest possible diligence when it comes to protecting young people, minors, from the risks that surround them on social media and in the digital world in general. The responsibility to protect minors is not something that falls only to one or two people. It falls to all of us. I think that's very clear, and so we need to promote this. We need to have functioning age verification because that would solve many problems, but it's also true that we need to work towards education. We need to see how both adults and minors become familiar with the digital world. Sometimes we think that we already know about it, but we don't know as much as we think we do about the risks it poses. We cannot leave it to the private sector when it comes to finding solutions to problems that minors face, things like eating disorders, mental health problems, etcetera, particularly when it comes to mental health. And to conclude, everything that young people share on social media—is it all happy or is the majority of what they share happy? It generally isn't. So this in turn frustrates them because when someone has a problem, they don't see other people sharing problems. They then seek out other places to solve this. They used to turn to their families or people they trusted. Now they seek this on the internet. They seek it on social media.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you very much, Chair. I'm going to speak on behalf of Dora David as on this report. First of all, I would like to thank Crystal Saldemosa and her team's hard work and that of everyone involved on it. I'm very happy that we all agree on our common goal: save digital space for children. There are no silver bullets, but I welcome our constructive approach to ensure that we have a comprehensive toolbox for protecting minors online and that we use those tools effectively. Those tools should include the following: minors should not be permitted to register on social media or video sharing platforms under the age of sixteen without parental consent. This balances children's rights to participation and information with their safety while acknowledging parental responsibility and empowering them to decide when their child is mature enough to access these services. Of course, prerequisite for this is effective age checks commensurate with the risk of the service. In the case of social media and video sharing platforms, each assurance mechanism must be highly effective, accurate, reliable, nonintrusive, and privacy-preserving. Social media and the video sharing platforms should not show minors content based on profiling because profiling-based recommender systems are one of the most addictive features, making it very hard to leave the platform. This takes time away from sleep, study, and real-world interactions. We should not forget about video games and should therefore extend DSA-equivalent protections to them. Children deserve the same robust level of protection irrespective of whether the service they are engaging with happens to qualify as an online platform or not. Without a doubt, the video games industry is a key pillar of Europe's creative economy and has many benefits, but we cannot ignore research that loot boxes may act as a gateway to gambling in youth. Youth gambling-like functionalities should therefore be prohibited for minors, and we need greater transparency for in-game currencies and transactions. Platforms should not be permitted to incentivize kidfluencing, a growing trend which makes children dependent on platforms like views and feedback under pressure to create content for commercial gain. We need to strengthen enforcement of existing laws and better coordinate among the different enforcement authorities. We already have strong protections through the DSA and the UCPD when it comes to things like dark patterns. We should enforce these laws and focus on the legislative gaps. Finally, education and awareness-raising is key, both for parents and minors to understand and be able to handle online risk. In looking for the right solution, we should have a harmonized EU approach that provides uniform protection for kids and doesn't fragment the single market. A solution which acknowledges parental responsibility and empowers parents to make informed decisions about their children's online experience. A solution that takes into account the specificities of the platforms and adopts the risk-based approach. I look forward to continuing our work, and I trust we can make meaningful advances to protect our children.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “(10:27:32 – 10:29:28): very much, madam president, vice president Sejourney. For years now, we've been talking about the advantages and the challenges of the single market. This is a matter of urgency today, and it's always the same debate. How do we actually make it work properly? We now have tangible signs of our political commitment bearing fruit. 1 Europe, 1 market is our slogan. And alongside that, we have a historic agreement between council, commission, and parliament signed in Cyprus, which will be the beginning of a complete single market, a strong single market, we very much hope, rather than a failure. That is certainly not what we want. I want to say that I share the ambition. I'm on board with that, but I think that the process would be stronger if we had greater implication of this parliament before the agreement is reached. We've said this many, many times. We want to make sure that we really come back to competitiveness, that we move forward together. There are various obstacles in the single market. For instance, protectionism, excessive protectionism by some member states. Missus Vonderlian, the president did not talk about this today. And this is an issue also for council, and council is not taking part in this debate. That is regrettable. We have a road map. That's fine. But we also need to make sure that the road map yields tangible and measurable results. So greater integration, less fragmentation, action rather than just words, and a single market rather than 27 different national markets foreseeability rather than uncertainty and fewer obstacles and hurdles. So this has been said, and I now call upon the commission to move down that road and also make sure that the parliament supports this endeavor. Honorable Scuderi. Thank you very much, missus Scuderi. Thank”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “(10:36:10 – 10:38:39): Thank you very much indeed to the commission and the representative of Temu. I think it's very important to have Temu here today. It's a big platform, no doubt. So it's important, particularly in the situation we have now with a massive arrival of packages coming from large platforms like Temu into the EU without controls. I wasn't able to take part in the mission to China, but there were quite some members that went. And I heard it was a very fruitful meeting. And the rapporteur and negotiator, the main negotiator of the customs reform was involved. That's going to have a clear impact on the way in which we work on these products. But Temu was created three years ago. You've achieved something which would seem impossible, which is to have the penetration power you have, the size you have in record time. So well done on that. It may be a matter of luck. It may be a matter of financial ability. It may be the matter of support from a state, China, maybe all of them together. But how is it possible that you don't want to shoulder responsibility as a platform for the products that you're putting on the market having achieved this size? I think it will be good if you could because that would be great. But these are not just aesthetic changes. We're talking about structural changes. Let me stress once again, you've managed what you've managed in such a short time. And as I say, congratulations, it's great. But you should be able to be just as flexible in complying with our rules and giving the example for other platforms. So would you be able to do that? They say, you've got this market share now. That's to be praised. Yes. But do you think you could do it in compliance with our rules and give the example to others? I would like to do that because I would like to see that because it would show goodwill on your side. As my colleague, miss Charles de Moses, said, we have to move from the words, which are all great, to facts, to specific action. Thank you. Now for S and D, Della Rabocca.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “Thank you very much. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Thank you very much, Vice President, for coming today. First of all, on the 28th regime, we need to back this, as Mr. Schwab saying it was presented here in this Parliament in the Digital Single Market Group, and it was presented in right back in 2012. And when, when I made the proposal, I was told, you're out of your mind. And now the commission accepts it and says they want to work on it, which I believe is great because it's a fantastic way of simplifying rules. But the question is the first question, is the Council in agreement with that? I think that is a response that we need to hear. So could you say more about that. And secondly, infrastructure investment in infrastructure is crucial, especially if data traffic goes up and we want high quality infrastructure. Users and companies are calling for quality infrastructure to up to date. Today they work, but with an increase in data traffic, that's going to go up exponentially in the coming years because of AI, etc. if we don't maintain it, and if we don't invest in this infrastructure, we won't be able to have the quality that we have now for the demand that will exist. So if telecommunication companies are not competitive now, I know that Competition Act is not under your remit. What should we do about the Rules today. How can they be adapted for the future?”
  EU policy on accessibility of digital infrastructure
• “But there is this feeling of not really being familiar with the people providing the service. And I think it occurs to me that that might have been one of the bottlenecks when it comes to choosing a different business from those who take up the 70% now of that market, and I don't know whether that is the case or not, but if you could shed any light on that, that would be helpful. And then on the issue of competition. In the EU we have competition rules, which I think are a bit too much focused on the past and not on what we're seeing now. For example, in telecommunications, three operators as a minimum to compete in each member state. I wonder something whether something like that would be possible when it comes to cloud services, given the breadth of the market, the growing market that we're now seeing and the potential it has, or should we be taking things in a different direction? Thank you.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “So first of all, I completely agree. We continue to talk about the same thing and have been for 35 years, ever since this idea was first placed on the table. I think now is the time to do it. I won't go into detail on what's already been said, because we've been repeating ourselves for so many years that this is starting to feel like deja vu. But it's true. We have good reports. This type of study is all very well regarding the single market and its competitiveness, but the reality is that we then don't do what we say we want to do, whether that's because the council doesn't let us, or because the commission doesn't dare to, or because we as MEPs aren't doing our work. But the reality is that the single market is not working as well as it could because of terrible fragmentation. We still have high administrative burdens. Energy price is still very high. And when we talk about a single energy market, that's an idea. But it stays an idea and then it gets put away in the drawer and it is never carried out. And this has brought us to where we are now. We have lost a number of points in the GDP. We're not competitive and Europe has always grown thanks to overcoming crises. Currently, we are facing a crisis which may be the greatest we have faced since the European Union and this project were launched. And I think we need to continue growing thanks to crises. This crisis is an opportunity to make the single market a reality. This is no longer a debate. I would say as a the famous brand slogan is just do it. We should just do it. We have the way to do it. We know what the problem is. Now is the time to do it. Let's stop debating, let's stop having reports, etc. let's stop putting ideas on the table. Let's do what we know we need to do so that the single market can be the tool we all know it can be, but which it never manages to be because we don't finally conclude with this. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you very much. I'll be Spanish. So congratulations to the rapporteur and to the shadow rapporteurs. This is an opinion that comes from an own initiative report on the importance of young people. So I think, uh, we have to be careful because people talk about, uh, censorship, but that's not it. It's working together to reach an agreement. But I see that there are differences in opinion here. And I think this might mean that we don't do what is expected of us here. We're trying to reach agreements here so that our young people can feel protected. It's not about censuring people or spying on people. I'm surprised to hear such things. Uh, I'm a dad of five children. I certainly don't spy on my children. Um, but I would like them to, uh, feel protected when they are on, uh, social media. And it seems that those, uh, platforms don't want to put limits in place. They're abusing the vulnerability of our young, uh, people. Uh, they try to entice them to stay online as long as possible. So I think we're going in the right direction, but we shouldn't distort, uh, what we need to do here. And that is to eradicate a very serious problem. We need to protect our young people. They need to feel protected. It is an online world that is part of their world. It's not an experience we had growing up. They understand this world better than we do, so we need to support them, go along hand in hand with them and find solutions to these problems. Thank you.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you. President. Vice president. Commissioner. Digitalization Obviously is part of our lives, but this is like a tsunami that is impregnating everything. And in the case of young people, it's going even further. It's their world. It forms part of their identity, and it's universal. And I don't know anybody who does not use digital tools in all sorts of fields. And there are very many benefits to this. But it does not come without risks. So there are certain risks, certain problems. We've been talking about these. And we know that the consequences of them can be dreadful for children, um, self-harm, uh, mood disorders, pornography, all sorts of things. The digital world in which our children are growing up and have grown up may appear inoffensive, but in certain cases is not at all. So what we have to do is provide, uh, should we overprotect deprive them of their world or allow them to use it without limits? There is a third way between the two of these. Order, uh, Consensus and examples. And I think the idea is obviously to accompany our children and to educate them along the path, which allows them to be able to fully use the opportunities, but be aware of the risks. And the digital world is no exception to this. And I very much hope that the report will be adopted tomorrow in with a broad majority. And this report is heading in this way. It's only by a with parents platforms and other actors acting on this. Hand in hand where things will be safer. We want one standard, not 27. Because protection of minors is a shared responsibility, a responsibility on the part of all of us. Nobody wants to replace parents, but algorithms might just manage to do that.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you very much to the commission representative for this presentation, because we are always talking about SMEs and trying to improve their capabilities of being more competitive. But over the last few years, either we haven't done our work or it was left just words and no actions. I think this is one of the fundamental things that could provide easy access to financing, not just for the public side, but the private side as well. And I think what you've told us today is a good start. We need to work on this. And I think we're starting to, uh. Reach a crunch point where we really need to get down to it. I think this is heading in the right direction, however. Thank you.”
  Overall simplification of regulation in the EU
• “Well, it's true that there have been very difficult questions to answer. Can't answer all of them. But I'd like to talk about the innovation gap. Mr. Schwab talks about regime 28, whether there is a possibility using European innovation law. That's a question. We don't have the text yet. We don't know what it's going to be about. And the Scale Up Europe fund same thing. The European research space, the digital law. I'd like to know whether you can give us any information about those issues and how we can reduce that innovation gap as defined, and how we can make sure that something that we've been losing because of competitiveness gaps such as talent, how can we make sure that the roadmap that Mr. Rapino is talking about and you're talking about the five blocks, whether we're looking at measures to to retain and attract talent and to make up the gap that we've lost over the last 10 or 15 years. Thank you.”
  Research priorities within the EU
• “Thank you very much, president. Does the Commission feel that we have a problem with talent in Europe? Does the Commission feel that we're not able to be operational in the digital field? Does the Commission believe that with a fragmented market, we are able to be competitive? Do we have sufficient capacity for all of this, or we do have sufficient capacity for this? And in the past we have shown that we have talent, skill, young people, startups, entrepreneurs, scale ups who are able to be both competitive and innovative. Unfortunately, though, we put barriers up in their paths, which means that these skilled and talented people go outside the European Union and the startups, the scale ups find a fragmented union, and they're not able to continue to develop. And very often they bear an administrative burden which hampers their progress and sometimes discourages them, and they stop their activities. And the current environment doesn't allow them to innovate. So we do need an attractive digital environment. So rather than putting spokes in their wheels. We have to encourage these startups and scale ups to become the major companies in the digital area in Europe. So we need more market and more internal market. We need legal certainty, trust, growth opportunities for our SMEs and young people. And we have to pull down the obstacles that already that exist at the moment in the European Union, less red tape, fewer standards right across the internal market and with the same level of guarantees and protection. So the key, I feel, is that we need more internal market and fewer obstacles to innovation. We are on the right path, but I think we have to move from words to deeds. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “First of all, I completely agree. We continue to talk about the same thing and have been for 35 years, ever since this idea was first placed on the table. I think now is the time to do it. I won't go into detail on what's already been said, because we've been repeating ourselves for so many years that this is starting to feel like déja vu. But it's true. We have good reports. This type of study is all very well regarding the single market and its competitiveness, but the reality is that we then don't do what we say we want to do, whether that's because the council doesn't let us or because the commission doesn't dare to, or because we as MEPs aren't doing our work. But the reality is that the single market is not working as well as it could because of terrible fragmentation. We still have high administrative burdens. Energy price is still very high. And when we talk about a single energy market, that's an idea. But it stays an idea and then it gets put away in the drawer and it is never carried out. And this has brought us to where we are now. We have lost a number of points in the GDP. We're not competitive and Europe has always grown thanks to overcoming crises. Currently, we are facing a crisis which may be the greatest we have faced since the European Union and this project were launched. And I think we need to continue growing thanks to crises. This crisis is an opportunity to make the single market a reality. This is no longer a debate, I would say, as the famous brand slogan is just do it. We should just do it. We have the way to do it. We know what the problem is and now is the time to do it. Let's stop debating, let's stop having reports, etc. let's stop putting ideas on the table. Let's do what we know we need to do so that the single market can be the tool we all know it can be, but which it never manages to be because we don't finally conclude with this. Thank you.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank you. President. Vice president of the commission. Minister. Well, 280 odd thousand vehicles are circulating in the EU. Imagine without rules. But think of the number of EU citizens who have devices connected to the internet. So, um, we can shouldn't be surprised what's happening there. The advantage of the internet are undeniable, but they bring with them risks and in many cases represent huge problems for companies and start ups and particularly young people. And we've been living in the far West thus far. And, uh, basically things are being imposed on us, the exponential growth in the internet is similar to what happened when the cars were first introduced, or with the Industrial Revolution, the cars became crucial to economic development and growth and for our daily lives, generating chaos in cities like Paris or New York. At the start of the 20s. So there was a need to regulate and organize traffic. And so there were limits imposed. There were traffic signals introduced, traffic lights and baby seats put into cars and, uh, safety belts. Uh, it's called road safety, which encouraged uh, development as well. But, uh, rules are not against innovation. We have to strike a balance and translate to the market, including a digital market. And that's what the DCA DMA is trying to do. They're not trying to ban, nor to impose. It's about identifying the risk and minimizing it. It's not about attacking or censoring, but rather putting an end to abuse and protecting the rights of our consumers without undermining innovation. So we continue to push for these standards and their implementation. Thank you.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “Thank you very much. President. Commission vice President. Generative AI models are trained on user data. They generate traffic on social media. That's what Grock and X do. It's absolutely vital for them to win against the competition in social media. And now we're seeing a kind of cesspool where they're acting with complete impunity. The platforms just want to generate traffic and anything controversial, anything provoking a reaction is good because it generates clicks. And now we see intimate images generated by Grock. X is a chatbot. It could be comical if it wasn't so tragic for the victims. The whole point is that by generating outrage, they're also generating clicks. We need digital education and training from an early age. Responsible use of such platforms because it's generating traffic now, but it's irreversible.”
  Transparency and oversight of AI-generated content
• “We haven't been given a lot of information, but I get the impression that some aspects. In some regards, the rules are not being fully complied with. But the strength of the DMA is indisputable because we've seen moves by some of the companies alphabet in particular, Apple two, and even meta. They have moved from their original position to what we're seeing new. So that shows that the DMA is certainly having an effect and is being felt. So I think that the I think this the Commission and the Parliament have done a great job in terms of the rules. And this is a and this may set the scene for the competitive sector, not just in Europe but around the world. And it has been recognized in many other markets around the world. And I think that's very important. And it's very important too, that this regulation moves towards a more, better balanced, more competitive market. Marcus, and this is something we've discussed with the SMEs is something that wasn't the case in the past. So these companies. Had a rules imposed on them by the bigger companies. And the smaller companies were the ones to lose out. And there has also been a bit of a brain drain from Europe. And so we need to make the European market more attractive.”
  EU rules on digital competition
• “You president, vice president of the Commission, minister. The single market is perhaps the best tool that we have to defend European principles and values and encourage competitiveness. After thirty-two years we're still talking about topics that should have been resolved. Today we have an opportunity to do that but we have to move from words to actions. The terrible ten, as we know, are the obstacles that are holding back our competitiveness and are becoming an unsurmountable burden for our SMEs and businesses. We have to be clear, we need to avoid protectionism for member states. We want to ensure bureaucratic streamlining, something that works for everyone, for twenty-seven, one single voice to lead this project. Rules that are easy to comply with and will also ensure safety of our products. This will ensure that the single market works fully, will encourage investment and ensure the development of our businesses and professionals and will generate confidence, trust because we know that businesses will be able to protect themselves against global players. At the same time, we need to be able to develop our old standards and not have them imposed including in the digital arena when it comes to developing platforms and the same goes for environmental regulations. We also have to ensure that we protect young people because our single market should be seen as an opportunity for them, not as a problem when people are trying to find work. If we can't ensure that our project is attractive to the youngest of citizens then the European project will be over and we cannot allow this. We cannot. That is something that would be unforgivable.”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Uh, well. First of all, thank you to the commission for the presentation, and thank you for the work you're doing for the DFA on this public consultation. I think this is very important, and we've spoken before about this topic, and I have two points that I'm concerned about. First of all, the protection of minors online. I think it's something we can all agree on. It's something that we need to deal with, and we need to look at this from a perspective where it doesn't cause the market fragmentation that is happening due to the different national legislations. And secondly, although not directly related to online e-commerce of third countries, perhaps, uh, the lady from the commission could enlighten me how we can improve the situation we currently have with the entrance of millions of packages coming mostly from third countries, particularly from China. And regarding this topic, which I think we can all agree is a serious problem for our economy and our consumers as well as for our industry. I would like to know, have you taken into account that all of these topics, such as the marketing of influencers or the or simplification? Could all of this lead to improving the current situation? I insist that the industry is very concerned, and although sometimes consumers may not appear to be concerned if they buy goods that are unsafe, as are 70% of these imported goods, then through this legislative proposal, perhaps we could also improve that situation. I think it's a very good opportunity, Particularly one of the points you mentioned, which is greater control of personalized advertisement. All of these third country platforms don't follow the the rules, and yet they're carrying out massive advertising. When we have massive events like Black Friday, Christmas or Saint Valentine's Day, which is just coming up. So if this could help, we would be fully aligned with that. Thank you.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “Thank you. President. Thank you. On the 8th of September, 2024, the report was published on European competitiveness. We clearly saw the problems that we have to face and how to solve them. A year later, I was alarmed because of the inaction for and a threat to our competitiveness. So it's slow. It's true that this first year of legislative action, not a lot has been done. Of course, changes need to be introduced and it takes time, but the work programme for 2026 goes in the right direction. That is, to move into action is what we see in this work programme. But the major problem is that the protectionism of member states. That is a problem for the single market. We need support of the Council in order to make sure that all these recommendations can be put into practice. So we need to be disruptive in our measures, and we need to make sure that they are implemented properly. That is the way in which we created the single market and the euro unity, vision and courage. We need a solid single market which conveys trust to young people who are not always so enthusiastic about the European Union. We need to get attraction of youth of skills and we need to regulate this in a simple way. One rule, not 27 rules. So maybe this is a way to improve the situation. The commission has already written the part, but as the English say, it takes two to tango. So we're committed. Is the Council committed? That is the question. Thank you, Mr. Arias. You've got a blue card from Mr. Grazulis. Do you accept this? Do you accept it?”
  EU Single Market harmonisation
• “Thank very much here. I'm going to speak in Spanish. This is a very ambitious proposal, and the idea behind it is one that we like. However, there's always a but. A lot's already been said. I don't want to repeat things. There are some things I agree with. Some, I would distance myself from a bit. But we cannot and should not allow a made in Europe to be a protectionism mechanism on the one hand nor can it mean more expensive. So when someone buys a European product, they have to understand that the product is better. But currently, cheaper products are the same or comparable to European quality, at least in the eyes of consumers. A European product should be of similar comparable quality to another product, a Chinese product, for example, if we're talking about cars. Consumers won't look at if it's made in Europe or China. They'll see they'll look at the price of it. So if the products are the same but more expensive, then Europe made in Europe won't work. We all support the idea of a Green Deal, but sometimes it's become the dream deal, and that's something we can't allow. The idea behind it is good, but we shouldn't allow it to mean more expensive products.”
  "Buy European" provisions
• “Well, it's true that there have been very difficult questions to answer. Can't answer all of them. But I'd like to talk about the innovation gap. Mr. Schwab talks about regime 28, whether there's a possibility using European innovation law. That's a question. We don't have the text yet. We don't know what it's going to be about. And the Scale up Europe fund same thing. The European research space, the digital law. I'd like to know whether you can give us any information about those issues and how we can reduce that innovation gap as defined, and how we can make sure that it's something that we've been losing because of competitiveness gaps such as talent. How can we make sure that the roadmap that Miss Rapinoe is talking about and you're talking about the five blocks, whether we're looking at measures to to retain and attract talent and to make up the gap that we've lost over the last 10 or 15 years. Thank you.”
  Research priorities within the EU
• “Muchas gracias. Thank you very much. President. Commissioner. Well, extraordinary situations such as Covid 19, the Thomas Cook bankruptcy or the eruption of a volcano paralyzing European air space requires us to react and to adapt our rules. It's crucial for businesses and consumers that we guarantee the viability of the tourist sector. I think here we've found a balance between protecting consumers rights and the viability of our businesses, particularly SMEs. These things are compatible, but it's difficult to guarantee citizens rights without having viable businesses. Now there is a balance here. We need clear responses, though, rather than providing masses of bureaucracy. And I think that's been provided for in the text that we have from the Parliament. In addition, experience shows that there are exceptions and there are consequences devastating the loss of jobs, lost investments, and we need to have flexible rules in place so that we're ready for these unexpected situations. And we don't want to place too much of a burden on our businesses. Now, I think the key to this balance is trust Legal certainty. We need guarantees for passengers. Also for including their safety and the money they've spent on holidays. But also we need security for businesses. So that's what we need. We need a strong sector, competitive businesses. And we need to see the rights of consumers protected. It's only thus that we'll be able to safeguard our single market. Thank you.”
  EU policy on aviation safety
• “Thank you. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First of all, I'd like to thank our experts. He's done an excellent job. And what he said covers many of my questions. But there are. I do still have some doubts. So we talked about funding and financing, of course. But financing, of course, has to be secured. We need some money for that. And clearly the question of staff is very important when it comes to implementing this plan, which is very important for this reform process. We also have to bear in mind the fact that what we need is effective controls on what's coming in more than 4000, 4.6 billion packages coming in below this threshold of €50. And they're not covered. And it would be impossible to cover them and to fully understand what is coming in, or to address those packages with other standards without endangering our own producers, factories or indeed consumers. So within the financing, as well as the proposed increase in the budget, do we actually I understand there is a roadmap, but I'm sure you've got some more information about this, about the following points. First of all, the technology which would be used here. As Miss Rapini said on training and education of staff so as to ensure that they could use this technology efficiently so as to enable them to monitor what's coming across our borders. And at the same time, we also have to establish what is legal, what's acceptable. We can't always identify that. So if you could perhaps expand on that issue. So resources, personnel or staff financing so as to ensure that the packages can be checked. Obviously you can't check all packages, but it's important if we are able to check a large number of packages that would dissuade people from sending in non-compliant merchandise, which might pose a safety issue for our consumers, as well as posing a problem in terms of competitiveness for our businesses. Thank you.”
  EU policy on custom fee on non-EU imports
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish, if you don't mind a lo primero. Gracias. First, I'd like to thank the Court of Auditors for their presentation on the report on Geoblocking. But what we've heard today is quite negative in general. It's just a bit. Have you just evaluated the negative part of the report? I imagine there's also a positive side to it, which I imagine is much bigger. So I'd like to hear both sides of it. I'd like to hear about where it's working on the market and where we have our doubts and where things need to be done better. Regarding the inclusion of audiovisual services. For me, this is one that we've been debating for a long time. This rule talks about a five year review and the Court of Auditors. I understand, and please correct me if I'm wrong that are for the committee that it's a it's a continue to study this question of inclusion even though but it's not a. So we feel that you're saying there's not enough evidence to include this or to argue for this inclusion. So so personally speaking. I, I think we have sufficient data for it to do you think there's sufficient data to to revise this view as to whether it's a needs to be included in this review? But I think we have to be careful in terms of regulating something that is a problem that we don't make things worse rather than fixing things. So anyway, again, I've heard a lot of negative things about the implementation, the enforcement. But I'd like to also hear about the positive part, which I didn't hear any of. Thank you.”
  Geo-blocking
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First, I'd like to thank the speakers. I think it was very interesting to hear them. In particular, I think we're beginning to understand the capacity and the potential that we have here. Once again, we are very far behind our competitors. When we talk about digital sovereignty in Europe. We need to talk about cloud services. And what we can see, indeed is from the data that we've been given, foreign operators have 70% of the market now and Europeans only 15%. And we did have a slightly higher share of the market. So we're actually getting worse. I'd like to focus a bit on the issue of why I. It is. I understand that we ought to know these things, but when a cloud service is offered, sometimes the security of the client, whether it's an institution or a business or a private individual, the security of the client has a lot to do with who is offering the service. And as the last speaker said, sometimes there's an issue of innovation, but also there's a question of security. Who is going to give us the security about the data, who is maintaining that and who is managing the data? So in those terms, the question really is, do we think it is important to know the businesses that are providing services? There are services represented today that I wasn't familiar with and I'm sure they provide excellent services.”
  EU digital & tech sovereignty
• “Thank you. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. First of all, Thank you to the Commission and to the experts who have participated here today, having listened to the two panels. I have some positive takeaways, but there clearly is a considerable challenge ahead here. We're talking about the implementation of the CPC. I think it has been well implemented until suddenly it stopped being adapted to the new challenges we're experiencing. I think there's a before and after based on Covid, and we mentioned these large numbers of parcels arriving from third countries. The fact is, the CPC needs to be adapted to the reality we're facing now. And so I think we absolutely do need to adjust it. I do think the implementation was properly carried out until it stopped the moment when it stopped being effective. Something that we've said a number of times here in this committee. And I think the participants, almost all of the panels have mentioned, panelists have mentioned this influencers, false marketing, advertising and the influence of consumers buying and bringing into the EU products that are not in line with the standards. Back in the day, we always used to talk about how advertisement needs to be real. We need to tell the truth when we're advertising a product, but that's not something we see today online. So in addition to ensuring we can accredit accredit things properly, simplifying the regulation, no longer having 27 different standards, rather having one unified one. But in addition we also need to adapt the regulation, apply it better and ensure that our market is safe and that the protection of the consumer in a safe market is something that we need to have.”
  EU competences on consumer protection and product standards
• “I would like to ask you two additional things. So first of all, interoperability, technological interoperability. As you said, this is an important European issue. And we decentralized rather than decentralized. Some years ago it was fashionable to decentralize these things. But we're moving back towards centralization now. I think it's essential importance. There'll be enormous quantities of data using this technology, and we have to ensure that we can use this effectively, um, with a customs relevant format. When it comes to funding, we also have to bear in mind how that will be worked out. So I understand that this is a study which the commission asked for. It's not the commission explaining about the ins and outs of the study. Unfortunately, we haven't got the commission. I would like to have heard what the commission had to say about it. So we could have learnt a lot from what the commission has to say about it. They could have set out their arguments regarding what said in the report. So I would like to have heard that in the debate. Thank you.”
  Interoperability requirements for digital platforms
• “Thank you very much, sir. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Thanks firstly to the experts for their contributions. I think we've taken very close notes of everything that's been said. We do have two models on the table for the protection of minors. The first is the Australian model, which is a total ban. The second is doing very little legislatively, which is what the platforms advocate and the Trump administration. And there could be a third way, which is what we're looking at here, which is a limit or structure, the protection of minors. We've created a digital world where there were no rules. Now we have the DSA, for example, where rules are or have been developed, and we have a possible proposal from the Commission for the Protection of Minors. And we need some kind of basic rules which structure and protect young people. Um, you can't eliminate risk entirely. And digitalization has brought great benefits for competitiveness and competition. But there are clear disadvantages. And we need rules, um, to protect young people. Age verification is something which is fundamental. Without that, we can't do much. But it's also the fact that by trying to solve one problem, we can create more problems. So I think it's very important that we don't just listen to one voice, but many. We need a way of hearing different opinions. I, as a father of five, know what goes on in my house, but not in others. I know the problems that my children have in certain aspects, but not in others. So I think a way of structuring exposure in the digital environment is very important. Understanding its aspects and its risks and how to address them. Um, how to be able to take them on without criminalizing them, uh, whether you're talking about chats or other digital environments. So I think it's very important to be able to hear those voices and take those steps. Thank you.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Thank you very much. Chair. I'm going to speak in Spanish. Good afternoon, Vice President. And thank you very much for being here in the Imco committee. Well, I'm surprised and disappointed. Disappointed when I saw that the point the exchange of views was so limited. I mean, there are very important points for competitiveness, but your responsibilities in the European Commission, in the sphere of the single market, go beyond that. There are six gatekeepers, only one of which is European. Do you not think it would be a success if we had more European companies at this level? And we see very clearly that if we want a competitive Europe, we need low prices, we're going to have a continued demand for energy. We've seen that the European Commission and the European Union is going for clean industries. But what about the nuclear power stations, we would need a new competition rules for telecommunications that are in line with the present and the future, and not entrenched in the past in order to be competitive. The increase in data traffic is a challenge that we can't meet with the current rules. We need investment and we need competitive businesses. We need an attractive market, and a lot of small businesses lack trust. They've had to adapt to environmental rules that are impossible for them. So we need fewer standards. Our standards don't make our single market a place where they can develop their potential. We need to be able to attract a talent in order to boost the competitiveness. My question is, what is your plan for our businesses to be able to compete? And do you not think it would be better to have more gatekeeper Per European companies, not just academics. I think we would all agree that we need to go further if we want to be competitive in the digital world. Thank you.”
  EU Competition policy
• “Thank you very much. Here, I'm going to speak in Spanish. Well, I would agree with the remarks made by Mr. Godsey. This is obviously an essential point when it comes to defending democracy. And in particular, it's a transparency mechanism, which means that it's possible for citizens to vote with being fully informed via this mechanism. And that is very much the spirit in which we worked. A great effort was made by the team from the European Parliament in the trilogues when it came to negotiating this file. So in my view, what matters now, and this is something that Mr. Guzzi said as well. This will only work if there is real simplification of the process and if it can be implemented effectively. That really is the perspective from which we must be working. The commission needs to make a big effort, and the Parliament must do the same to ensure that this key piece of legislation can be implemented in an effective way in order to achieve the aims behind it, and it's something we really insisted on during the negotiations. It's not about looking at the content, it's about understanding clearly who is behind the content, who's sponsoring the content and the information being provided to citizens. So I feel that it's crucial for this Parliament to keep an eye on this. The commission needs to keep working. And then in a few months time, hopefully this will have become a tangible reality. It will be effective, and that will certainly be a very good thing for democracy and for the European institutions.”
  Transparency requirements of EU institutions
• “Thank you, ministers, for your presentation. As we are a very short on time, I will just ask two questions. First of all, 13 years ago in this Parliament, in the single digital market, the working group of this committee, we talked about regime 28 in the digital sphere. And the two years later we had, um, the latter report going even further for the vision 28. And then a year later, the Commission made a proposal, which I support, that goes in the right direction. It's a good initiative for simplification. So now I would like to know that with the Danish presidency, uh, Minister Bosko mentioned this, but only in passing. Do you have a concrete idea of a timeline to move forward on this? And, uh, apart from miners. My next question is, well, we've spoken a lot about miners, but three years ago in this Parliament as well. Article 28 was added to the DSA, and we hope that we won't take another ten years to, um, find concrete ways to protect young people Online. We're very happy to see this as a concrete presidency priority. But if every member state proposes its own measures to protect minors, we will have a significant, perhaps even greater problem than the one that we're trying to solve. So what exactly are you trying to do? And how is this presidency going to concretely move forward to protect minors? Thank you.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online
• “Muchas gracias. Thank you. President. Often we have heard about how children can be cruel, but not all children are cruel. Children are innocent. When the problem came to social networks, it became exacerbated. We saw X and cyber bullying. What it is is playground bullying online and it targets the most vulnerable young people, women, those with disabilities. We're seeing a rise according to studies like the European Commission study published at the end of 2024. We live in a digital age and we cannot have anonymity. We need to protect victims and whistleblowers, not perpetrators. The digital environment should offer the same safeguards as the real world. We need a common definition of cyber bullying across member states to properly describe the problem. That is a prerequisite to take action. We need education, we need support, and we need critical thinking. We need to help children, parents, educators to develop critical thinking. We need young people to be aware of the consequences of their actions online. Their action online may seem meaningless, but that can have devastating effects in the real life A world. We need to allow children to live through their innocence and childhood, but mature and become responsible adults. Thank you.”
  Safety features & content control for child protection online