A new All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) has been set up for beauty, aesthetics and wellbeing, chaired by Carolyn Harris MP and Judith Cummins MP. APPGs are informal cross-party groups which are run by and for Members of the House of Commons and the House of Lords. They usually involve organisations from outside Parliament in running the APPG and contributing to their work. 

The formation of this group within Parliament shows that MPs recognise the importance of the beauty industry to the UK economy and also shows they have a real interest in the challenges the industry currently faces. The political spotlight is on aesthetics and non-medical cosmetic procedures, reflected in the fact that the Department of Health and Social Care has just launched a safety campaign, #CluedUpOnCosmetics, targeted at young people 18-35, who research has shown are the most likely to be considering treatments such as fillers and anti-wrinkle treatments such as Botox.

The new group’s formation was announced at a Westminster Hall debate on the medical aesthetics industry, with MPs calling for a new minimum age law of 18 to make it more difficult for young and impressionable people to have unsuitable cosmetic procedures. 

The debate also confirmed that beauty therapists have a role to play in providing aesthetic treatments, provided they are properly trained and qualified.