Agius saliba, peter Agius unite against temu

Labour MEP Alex Agius Saliba has welcomed his Nationalist counterpart Peter Agius joining opposition to the EU's proposed charge on low-value parcels imported through platforms such as Temu, Shein and AliExpress – describing it as rare cross-party alignment on a consumer issue affecting Maltese shoppers. The proposal, introduced by the European Commission and the Council, would impose a €3 charge on many low-value imports arriving in the EU.

Agius Saliba says he has been pushing back against the measure for more than a year, pointing to a video from February 2025 in which he raised concerns before the European Parliament's Internal Market Committee. He also accuses the Commission and Council of bypassing the Parliament in the way the proposal was brought forward. Peter Agius drew public attention to the charge's potential impact on Maltese consumers and wrote to Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warning that it could push up living costs and fall disproportionately on island states like Malta.

Agius Saliba also sounded a broader alarm, claiming that certain parliamentary voices are now pushing for the provisional €3 fee to be scrapped in favour of a fixed levy of €8 to €12 applied to each parcel brought into the EU. "After two years, we are now united in opposing this unfair measure," Agius Saliba said.