Work on introducing new anti-SLAPP legislation continues to forge ahead, with MEP Roberta Metsola emphasising the need and responsibility the EU has to protect journalists. Metsola has been appointed as a rapporteur together with German S&D MEP Tiemo Wölken on new legislative efforts to prevent SLAPP suits against journalists in the EU. SLAPP suits - Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation - are designed to censor and intimidate journalists and silence critics by overwhelming them with legal costs to defend lawsuits often filed in another country. Metsola said the aim was for the new legislation to be a watershed moment for the protection of the press.