Regulation 2 Eligibility criteria

(1)

The criteria referred to in section 169(3) of the 2023 Act (criteria that must be met by an entity^f1 for it to be an “eligible entity”) are set out in paragraphs (2) to (6).

(2)

The first criterion is that the entity must be a body representing the interests of users of regulated services, or members of the public, or a particular group of such users or members of the public^f2.

(3)

The second criterion is that the composition of the entity and the arrangements for its governance and accountability are such that it can be relied upon to act independently from regulated services^f3 (see also paragraph (4)).

(4)

That an entity—

(a)

receives funding from regulated services, or

(b)

has one or more representatives from regulated services involved in the governance of that entity,

does not prevent that entity from being able to meet the criterion in paragraph (3).

(5)

The third criterion is that the entity routinely contributes significantly, as an expert, to public discussions about any aspect of online safety matters^f4.

(6)

The fourth criterion is that the entity can be relied upon to have due regard to any guidance published by OFCOM under section 171(2) of the 2023 Act.

Annotations

Footnotes

f1: “Entity” is defined in section 236(1) of the Online Safety Act 2023.
f2: “Users” is defined in section 169(6) of the Online Safety Act 2023.
f3: “Regulated service” is defined in section 4(4) of the Online Safety Act 2023.
f4: “Online safety matters” is defined in section 235(4) of the Online Safety Act 2003.