Tommy Robinson has avoided being banned from YouTube but faces tougher restrictions on his videos.

The English Defence League founder has been kicked off Facebook and Instagram in recent months, over claims he is fuelling hate among followers.

But Google-owned YouTube has defied calls for a similar ban on Robinson's videos on its site.

Instead, his videos will now come with a content warning and are removed from recommendations. Viewers will no longer be able to comment, suggest or like the videos.

Tommy Robinson has been told he can stay on YouTube, but faces restrictions following hate speech complaints

YouTube said that although the 36-year-old's videos are not illegal, it decided to apply tougher treatment in response to users flagging his content as potentially violating its rules against hate speech and violent extremism.

Robinson, who has more than 387,000 followers on his YouTube channel, will also be blocked from live streaming.

The move was welcomed by anti-extremism group Hope Not Hate. A spokesman for the group said: 'Stephen Lennon [Tommy Robinson's real name] has flouted the law, raked in hundreds of thousands of pounds promoting his conspiracies and stoking communal hatred, all while social media giants have provided the platforms that are vital to his high profile.

'YouTube is a powerful tool for the likes of Stephen Lennon and the DIY fascists who try to use the platform to radicalise young people.

'Pew research suggests that a whopping 81% of users watch recommended videos, so turning that tap off for Lennon is a good start. But people will rightly ask why YouTube are providing a platform for hate speech at all.'

A YouTube spokesman said: 'After consulting with third-party experts, we are applying a tougher treatment to Tommy Robinson's channel in keeping with our policies on borderline content.

'The content will be placed behind an interstitial, removed from recommendations, and stripped of key features including live streaming, comments, suggested videos and likes.'

YouTube is the last big online platform where internet users can find Robinson's content

YouTube is Mr Robinson's last big online space, after bans on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and PayPal.

Deputy Labour leader Tom Watson and Damian Collins, chairman of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Committee, are among the growing number of voices who are calling for the activist to be shut down online.

Mr Watson sent a letter to Google's chief executive Sundar Pichai, saying: 'I am now writing to implore you as a matter of utmost urgency to follow the lead that has been, belatedly, set by Facebook, and remove forthwith all 'Tommy Robinson' and related pages from your YouTube platform.'

Mr Robinson has previously said that efforts to ban him online were part of the 'corrupt media and the establishment' trying 'to silence any opposition to their globalist plans'.