New regulations aim to tackle dangerous cosmetic procedures

Lower-risk treatments such as Botox will also be strictly policed with a local authority licensing system imposing tight safety, training and insurance standards

The government has announced plans to introduce new measures to crack down on cowboy cosmetic procedures that have left people maimed, injured and in need of urgent NHS care.  

Under the proposed regulations, which will be subject to public consultation and parliamentary scrutiny before they are introduced, only qualified healthcare professionals will be able to perform the highest-risk procedures - such as non-surgical Brazilian butt lifts.  These must be carried out by specialised healthcare workers working in providers that are registered with the Care Quality Commission (CQC). 

The planned clampdown follows a series of incidents where people have had high-risk treatments from people with little or no medical training, leading to dangerous complications, permanent scarring and even death. The new rules are designed to protect people from unqualified, rogue operators and reduce the cost to the NHS of fixing botched procedures.  

The new measures follow growing alarm over unqualified individuals performing invasive treatments in unsafe environments - including homes, hotels and pop-up clinics. Many of these procedures are marketed as non-surgical but are invasive and carry serious risks.  

“This isn’t about stopping anyone from getting treatments - it’s about preventing rogue operators from exploiting people at the expense of their safety,”.

Karin Smyth, Minister of State for Health, said, “The cosmetics industry has been plagued by a Wild West of dodgy practitioners and procedures. There are countless horror stories of cosmetic cowboys causing serious, catastrophic damage.” 

She added, “This isn’t about stopping anyone from getting treatments - it’s about preventing rogue operators from exploiting people at the expense of their safety,”. 

Other lower-risk cosmetic treatments - including Botox, lip fillers and facial dermal fillers - will also come under stricter oversight through a new local authority licensing system. Practitioners will be required to meet rigorous safety, training, and insurance standards before they can legally operate. Once regulations are introduced, practitioners who break the rules on the highest-risk procedures will be subject to CQC enforcement and financial penalties.

The government also plans to bring in restrictions for under 18s on high-risk cosmetic procedures, unless authorised by a healthcare professional. 

Millie Kendall OBE, Chief Executive Officer at the British Beauty Council, said it welcomed the government’s announcement that it is pushing forward with legislation. “Any measures that increase protection for the general public and professionalise the industry will help instil confidence as well as helping to prevent the normalisation of horror stories that have become synonymous with our sector.”

Professor David Sines CBE PhD, Executive Chair and Registrar at the Joint Council for Cosmetic Practitioners (JCCP), also said that the proposals have the organisation’s full support: “The introduction of standards to ensure that patients are safeguarded and protected from harm, ensuring that all cosmetic practitioners are regulated and licensed to a new national education and training standard, that they are appropriately insured and that they work from safe premises at all times has become imperative.”

Mark Elliott, President of CIEH, said, “We welcome the introduction of improved regulation and a new scheme of licensing. We look forward to continuing to work with the government in order to achieve a licensing scheme that includes the full range of procedures that were to be covered by the scheme in the original consultation.”

In August, the Department of Health and Social Care also announced that it would be partnering with TikTok to highlight the risks of travelling abroad for cosmetic procedures.