OpenLegislation

The Online Safety Act 2023 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2023

S.I. 2023/1242 · Made 21 November 2023

Original text. legislation.gov.uk does not revise statutory instruments, so later amendments are not shown here. Changes made to it are listed under each provision when known.

ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

Made 21st November 2023

The Secretary of State makes these Regulations in exercise of the powers conferred by section 240(1) of the Online Safety Act 2023f1.

Annotations to the whole text

Footnotes

f1

2023 c. 50.

Contents

  1. 1Citation and extent
  2. 2Commencement
  3. Signature
  4. Explanatory note

1Citation and extent

(1)

These Regulations may be cited as the Online Safety Act 2023 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2023.

(2)

These Regulations extend to England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

2Commencement

Subsections (2) and (7) of section 114 of the Online Safety Act 2023 come into force on the day after the day on which these Regulations are made.

Signature

Saqib Bhatti

Parliamentary Under Secretary of State

Department for Science, Innovation and Technology

21st November 2023

Explanatory note

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations bring section 114(2) and (7) of the Online Safety Act 2023 (c. 50) (“the Act”) into force. They are the first Commencement Regulations made under the Act. The provisions specified in section 240(4) of the Act came into force on the day which it was passed.

Section 114(1) of the Act grants the Office of Communications (“OFCOM”) an express power to co-operate with an overseas regulator, including by disclosing online safety information to that regulator, for the purposes of (a) facilitating the exercise by the overseas regulator of any of that regulator’s online regulatory functions, or (b) criminal investigations or proceedings relating to a matter to which the overseas regulator’s online regulatory functions relate. Section 114(2) of the Act provides that OFCOM’s power to co-operate only applies in relation to an overseas regulator specified in regulations made by the Secretary of State. Section 114(7) of the Act defines certain terms for the purposes of section 114, including the terms “online regulatory functions”, online safety information” and “overseas regulator”.

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen.