Government Outlines New Super-Complaints Mechanism Under Online Safety Act

11 Jun 2025 02:17 PM

The next steps of Online Safety Implementation announced by the Under-Secretary of State for AI and Digital Government.

On the 9 of June, the Government published its response to the super-complaints eligible entity criteria and procedural requirements consultation, confirming the next step in implementing the Online Safety Act 2023, with the Government laying an affirmative resolution  statutory instrument: Online Safety Super-Complaints (Eligibility and Procedural Matters) Regulations 2025. 

Key documents 

• Government response: super-complaints eligible entity criteria and procedural requirements consultation 
• Written Statement  
• Statutory instrument 

The new statutory instrument sets out the eligibility criteria and procedural framework for the Online Safety Act’s super-complaints mechanism — described by Ministers as “a crucial aspect of the Act’s overall complaints handling, reporting and redress mechanisms”. 

The mechanism will allow  eligible entities to raise complaints directly with Ofcom about regulated services that may be causing or posing a material risk of significant harm to users, infringing on freedom of expression, or otherwise having significant adverse impacts on users or the wider public. 

In a Ministerial Written Statement to the House of Commons, Feryal Clark, Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for AI and Digital Government explained that these new powers are designed to ensure Ofcom is aware of issues “they might otherwise not have been made aware of,” and will help the regulator to “focus priorities, target resources and recognise and eliminate systemic failings.” 

Who Can Submit Super-Complaints? 

To be eligible, an organisation must: 

• Represent the interests of users of regulated services or specific public groups 
• Be independent from those services, although funding or involvement does not disqualify them if safeguards are in place 
• Demonstrate expertise in online safety matters 
• Be able to consider and act in line with Ofcom guidance 

Clark noted that the regime is voluntary and designed to “impose no significant burden on businesses, charities, or voluntary bodies.” 

Timelines and Admissibility 

Once a complaint is submitted: 

• Ofcom must determine eligibility within 30 days, or 15 days if eligibility has been previously established within five years 
• The entire process must typically be completed within 120 days, or 105 days for previously eligible entities 
• A “stop the clock” provision applies where necessary, such as to request further evidence 
• Only one complaint may be submitted per entity every six months, though substitutions are allowed 

Ofcom may also reject complaints in certain circumstances — such as duplication, or if a matter is already under review elsewhere. 

Changes Following Consultation 

Clark confirmed that changes had been made in response to an eight-week consultation held from November 2023 to January 2024. These include: 

• Removing the statutory pre-notification period 
• Reducing the eligibility assessment period to 15 days for returning applicants 
• Limiting Ofcom’s ability to pause complaint timelines 
• Expanding eligibility to include newer expert organisations, not just those with an established track record 
• Allowing entities to withdraw and replace a complaint within the six-month window 

Next Steps 

The regulations (including the statutory instrument) are scheduled to commence on 31 December 2025, with Ofcom expected to publish detailed guidance - following consultation - later in the year. 

The Department will monitor the implementation as part of a wider review of the Online Safety Act, with a formal review to take place between two and five years after full implementation. 

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