Eight months after being elected as a new Member of the European Parliament, MEP Alex Agius Saliba has been nominated for the MEP Awards 2020, the Labour Party said in a statement.

He has been shortlisted together with two other members of the European Parliament for the Internal Market & Consumer Protection award. His nomination comes days after POLITICO Europe listed him as one of the 20 MEPs to watch in 2020 for being entrusted with the IMCO committee's report on the Digital Services Act.

"This is a huge surprise and honour that as a newly elected MEP, I have been selected as one of the nominees for the MEP Awards. I am also truly humbled to be among this year's nominees for the Internal Market and consumer protection award, together with two of my very-well known and respected colleagues in the internal market committee," he said. 

"I would be extremely honoured if I am to win this award, but the nomination itself is already a great recognition of my work as a newly elected MEP. This nomination is not only for me, but for Malta and for the Maltese people that have put their trust in me. I am happy that despite coming from the smallest Member State in the European Union with our work as MEPs, we can have great impact and influence over European politics," the MEP added.

Agius Saliba has been appointed rapporteur for the Digital Services Act - a future piece of legislation expected from the new European Commission that will set rules on how platforms such as Google and Facebook will operate in the digital world. MEP Alex Agius Saliba would work on what is already one of the mandate's most high-profile technology files while navigating a new digital environment in the future.

He recently negotiated on behalf of his political group a resolution on a common mobile phone charger, calling on the European Commission to develop a universal charger for mobile phones and small and medium electronic devices.