Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what steps he is taking to regulate (a) extreme body modification, (b) tongue splitting, (c) ear reshaping, (d) under-the-skin implants and (e) tattoos.

The Government is committed to supporting people to make informed and safe choices about any procedure they are considering and to make sure that the person they choose is appropriately qualified, registered and insured.

The provision of cosmetic surgery, where the surgical procedure involves the use of instruments or equipment which are inserted into the body is a regulated activity and providers are required to register with the Care Quality Commission (CQC) and meet the essential requirements of safety and quality.

On 31 October 2017, regulations came into force which impose a duty on the CQC to rate and assess the performance of providers of surgical procedures for cosmetic purposes where the procedure requires intravenous sedation, general anaesthesia or the insertion of an implant.

The Government is currently exploring options to extend this, including making changes to how we regulate activities, providers or practitioners of cosmetic interventions.