The European Parliament has given its final approval to the Media Freedom Act. The new rules protect journalists’ work by prohibiting authorities from pressing journalists to disclose their source, detaining and searching them, and installing intrusive surveillance software on their devices. To ensure transparency and editorial independence, public media platforms’ heads and board members will be selected by a transparent procedure, and news and current affairs outlets will need to publish their owners’ information in a national database. The media will also have to report on the funding it receives to ensure a fair allocation for state advertising. MEPs also agreed on a mechanism which restricts very big online platforms like X and Instagram from arbitrarily restricting or deleting independent media content.

The European Parliament has approved the Toy Safety Regulation which repeals Directive 2009/48/EC (the Toy Safety Directive) and aims to reduce the number of unsafe toys sold in the EU single market and better protect children from toy-related risks. The file will be followed up by the new Parliament after the June 2024 elections.

European Parliament has approved legislation reforming the EU visa suspension mechanism to make it easier to remove visa-free travel rights from countries posing security or human rights risks. The reform expands suspension grounds to include hybrid threats, investor citizenship schemes ('golden passports'), human rights violations, and failure to comply with international court decisions. It covers 61 countries whose nationals can currently travel to the Schengen area visa-free for up to 90 days. MEPs voted 518 in favour, 96 against, with 24 abstentions on 7 October 2025. The law also enables targeted suspensions of government officials and sets new thresholds of 30% for substantial increases in overstaying or serious crimes, and 20% for low asylum recognition rates. It now awaits formal Council adoption and will enter into force 20 days after publication in the EU Official Journal.

The European Parliament has given its final approval to the ‘hydrogen and gas markets decarbonisation package’, comprising revisions to Directive 2009/73/EC (the Gas Directive) and Regulation (EC) 715/2009 (the Gas Regulation). The Parliamentary vote follows a provisional agreement reached between the Parliament and the Council of the EU in late 2023. The package aims to decarbonise the energy sector and enhance the production and integration of renewable gases and hydrogen. The revised Regulation will increase mechanisms for fair pricing and energy supply, introduce a joint gas purchasing system to avoid competition among Member States and a pilot project to bolster the hydrogen market for five years and increase investments in hydrogen infrastructure. These texts will now have to be formally adopted by the Council of the EU before publication in the Official Journal.

The European Parliament has approved a directive introducing harmonised insolvency rules for EU companies, endorsing a provisional agreement reached with Member States in November 2025. The directive enhances insolvency practitioners’ access to beneficial ownership registers and national databases for asset tracing and introduces EU-wide pre-pack proceedings. It provides for three-month clawback periods for preferential creditor transactions. The rules also strengthen directors’ obligations to file for insolvency within three months and enable the establishment of creditors’ committees and simplified winding-up procedures for microenterprises. The directive will enter into force 20 days after publication in the Official Journal, following formal member state approval.

The European Parliament has approved new legislation to strengthen protection for and promote the EU’s wine sector, endorsing by a large majority a provisional agreement reached with EU Member States. The measures aim to help wine producers respond to market pressures, climate-related risks and changing consumer demand, while opening new market opportunities. The legislation introduces clear labelling rules for de-alcoholised wines, allowing the term ‘alcohol-free 0.0%’ for wines with no more than 0.05% alcohol by volume and ‘alcohol reduced’ for wines above 0.5% alcohol by volume that are at least 30% lower in strength than the standard for their category. These rules are intended to improve legal certainty and consumer transparency. The new framework also increases financial support and flexibility for winegrowers facing severe natural disasters, extreme weather events or plant disease outbreaks, and allows EU funds to be used for crisis measures such as grubbing up vineyards. It sets a national ceiling of 25% of available funds for wine distillation and green harvesting to support production adjustment.

The European Parliament has approved new rules to reduce emissions from fluorinated gases and ozone-depleting substances (ODS), following its deal with the Council of the EU to further cut emissions from fluorinated gases and to reduce emissions of ozone-depleting substances. The new rules look to phase-out hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) by 2050 by introducing strict requirements that prohibit products containing F-gases to be placed on the market and encouraging the use of F-gas alternatives, such as domestic refrigeration and heat pumps, where it is technologically and economically feasible to do so. The Council will now have to formally approve the texts before it is published in the Official Journal of the European Union.

The European Parliament has approved new rules to strengthen the contractual position of farmers and help stabilise their incomes, with Members of the European Parliament voting 560 in favour, 75 against and 25 abstentions. The rules are intended to ensure that the final prices of food products better reflect actual costs and have a direct impact on farmers’ incomes, requiring Member States to establish and publish online benchmarks for use in contractual arrangements.

The European Parliament has approved new rules to tackle the increasing number of Strategic Lawsuits against Public Participation (SLAPPs) in the EU, to ensure individuals working on matters of public interest are protected against these abusive lawsuits. The new rules introduce two safeguards: early dismissal if the case is unfounded, and costs measures such as asking the claimant to pay the estimated cost of proceedings (including legal representation of the defendant) and damages. This will prevent forum shopping; claimants who have obtained judgments in a third country where their chances of success were highest may be prevented from having these judgments recognised in member states if the relevant proceedings are abusive. Member State governments will also ensure that victims of SLAPPs can access information on procedural safeguards and remedies, legal and financial aid and psychological support. The protection will apply across all cross-border cases except where the defendant and claimant are from the same EU country as the court or when the claim is relevant to only one Member State. The new rules will enter into force following its publication in the EU Official Law Journal.

Members of the European Parliament have approved an opinion on the impact of social media and the wider online environment on young people, proposing stronger protection for minors, clearer responsibilities for online platforms and improved enforcement across the EU. The opinion supports establishing a common European age limit for social media, requiring users to be at least 16 unless parental authorisation is granted, and prohibiting access for children under 13, alongside effective and privacy-friendly age verification systems and more consistent enforcement of existing child protection laws. It calls on the European Commission to introduce further measures through a forthcoming EU Digital Fairness Act to address gaps in current legislation without creating unnecessary regulatory burdens, covering practices such as targeted advertising, influencer marketing, addictive design features, loot boxes, virtual currencies and misleading website design, and highlighting risks linked to artificial intelligence, including misinformation, manipulation and emotional dependency, with a request for strict safeguards.

The European Parliament has approved the gradual implementation of the Entry-Exit System (EES) at EU external borders over 180 days, following agreement with the Council on 19 May 2025. The EES will register biometric and travel data of non-EU nationals entering or leaving the Schengen area for short stays. The measure aims to enhance border security, reduce wait times, and replace passport stamping. The Council must now formally adopt the law before it can take effect.

The European Parliament has approved a regulation which strengthens the protection of Geographical Indications (GIs) for wine, spirit drinks and agricultural products. MEPs want to ensure that administrative and judicial measures are implemented to prevent the illegal use of GIs offline and online and a GI used as an ingredient is used in the name, labelling and advertising of a related processed product. GI producers will also be able to prevent any measures which are detrimental to the image and value of their products and the producer’s name will appear in the same field of vision as the GI on the packaging to ensure transparency. The European Commission will scrutinise the GIs system, creating a streamlined and simpler registration process of GIs with a fixed deadline of six months for scrutiny of new GIs. Once the Council of the EU adopts the Regulation, it will come into force and be published in the Official Journal of the EU.