Regulation and licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures: consultation analysis and response
Summary of feedback from recent consultation and wider engagement, with revised proposals for regulation of non-surgical cosmetic procedures and an explanation of legislative next steps.
Ministerial foreword
Anyone undergoing cosmetic procedures has a right to expect that they will be carried out by appropriately trained practitioners using appropriate products and in hygienic premises. Following the feedback received from this consultation on the regulation and licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures, it is clear that there is broad agreement that we must act.
I was pleased the First Minister announced in May that the Scottish Government would bring forward a Bill on this important issue. I know many of my parliamentary colleagues, as well as many people working in this area, were also pleased by this news.
I would like to express my thanks to everyone who participated in the consultation process, whether by responding online or by sharing their views in through wider engagement. Your contributions have been invaluable in shaping our proposals. I hope you will see that we have made some modifications in response to the evidence we have seen and the views we have heard. There are a wide range of views represented but I am heartened that even those holding differing views on the best way of regulating non-surgical cosmetic procedures are united in a desire to make the sector safer.
I know that our consultation and the announced legislation is a source of anxiety for some parts of the non-surgical cosmetic procedures sector, and changes to the way the sector is regulated are bound to be of some concern, so I am setting out our intentions and why we are pursuing what is proposed here.
We need to act in the interests of all those who seek to undergo these procedures and respond to the evidence we have seen that some people have had negative and life changing experiences. In doing so I intend to bring forward robust proposals that allow the industry to provide procedures as safely as possible. I am satisfied that we will achieve this, and I look forward to working with Parliament to put these proposals into legislation.
The Scottish Government will now act to bring forward regulations for non-surgical cosmetic procedures that are proportionate, robust, and future-proofed.
Jenni Minto MSP Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health