Press releases

The European Commission today published its Accelerate EU plan, a much-needed set of measures to help consumers through the current fossil fuel crisis and beyond.

Under the plans, the Commission will legislate to reduce electricity taxes and network charges for all consumers. This would have a tangible impact on consumers’ energy bills: lowering taxes alone could lead to bill reductions of around 14%. Assistance will also be given to EU governments on how to provide targeted support to consumers who need it and promote social leasing schemes for electric cars.

The EU has agreed on a customs reform that will help to stop the flood of unsafe products sold to Europeans from outside the EU. This deal is an important win for consumers, after years of testing by consumer groups of the BEUC network of dangerous toys, textiles, and other products sold on online marketplaces like Temu and Shein.

Following today’s adoption of the European Parliament’s position on the AI omnibus and ahead of interinstitutional negotiations, BEUC calls upon the EU institutions and national governments to ensure that critical safeguards to protect consumers and their fundamental rights are kept in the AI Act.

A new analysis by the European Consumer Organisation (BEUC) concludes that Meta’s latest model to let consumers pay for an ad-free experience, or obtain their consent to show either personalised or less personalised ads, continues to breach the EU’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), the GDPR and the Unfair Commercial Practices Directive (UCPD).