The recent situation involving Shein in France has underscored the pressing need for improved oversight of e-commerce platforms, highlighting the necessity for the urgent enforcement of EU regulations and significant reforms. On Wednesday, the European Parliament took a decisive step by adopting a resolution, via a show of hands, to address the critical issue of illegal and unsafe products sold to EU consumers through e-commerce platforms, particularly those based outside the EU, such as Shein, Temu, AliExpress, and Wish.
This resolution concludes a parliamentary debate initiated by a scandal in France concerning the sale of child-like sex dolls and weapons, revealing systemic failures in platform oversight and inadequate preventive measures. Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) regard the events in France as a serious violation of EU law and a significant threat to the safety of consumers, particularly minors. They call upon the European Commission and EU member states to transition from dialogue to decisive and timely enforcement of the Digital Services Act (DSA) and the General Product Safety Regulation (GPSR).
The slow pace of the Commission’s investigations into non-EU online platforms, which can take several months or even years, has raised significant concerns among MEPs. They advocate for the temporary suspension of operations of online marketplaces that commit “repeated, serious, or systemic breaches of EU law,” as exemplified by the Shein case. This measure should no longer be seen as an exceptional, last-resort option.
MEPs express alarm at the substantial volume of non-compliant small parcels from Shein and similar non-EU platforms, a concern they attribute to a business model that prioritises speed and profit maximisation, ultimately leading to excessive consumption. Moreover, they highlight critical issues such as the exploitation of underpaid labour, unlawful imitation of designers’ work, the marketing of unsafe and non-compliant products, and the growing accumulation of textile waste driven by the artificially low prices set by these companies.
The resolution advocates a significant increase in financial and operational support for customs and market surveillance authorities, including increased allocations under the forthcoming multiannual financial framework. It also proposes introducing a harmonised, EU-level, WTO-compliant handling fee to cover supervisory costs.
In addition, the text emphasises the importance of implementing more stringent sanctions, expediting the timeline for the revised Union Customs Code, and considering new regulatory reforms and obligations for online marketplaces. These measures aim to close existing loopholes and ensure accountability for non-compliant goods entering the EU market.
