Asked by: Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle (Green Party - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the health risks presented by artificial hair braiding products, and how they plan to reduce or eliminate those risks.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Artificial hair braiding products are regulated by The General Product Safety Regulations (GPSR). The GPSR provides a baseline of safety, requiring that only safe products, in their normal or reasonably foreseeable use, can be sold.
To further safeguard consumer safety, Government is in the process of strengthening product safety regulation through the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill. That will provide new powers to allow us to reflect modern supply chains and create a proportionate regulatory framework to ensure UK consumers are protected from risk, regardless of product origin or where the product where the product was purchased.
Asked by: Luke Evans (Conservative - Hinckley and Bosworth)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if his Department will take legislative steps to improve the regulatory oversight of the non-surgical cosmetic sector.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to taking action to address the longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. We will set out the details of our approach in our response to the consultation on the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which we will publish at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Dan Norris (Independent - North East Somerset and Hanham)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential impact of trade deals with (a) India and (b) the USA on the economy of North East Somerset and Hanham constituency.
Answered by Douglas Alexander - Secretary of State for Scotland
On 8 May the UK government announced a landmark economic deal with the US. This protects jobs in the automotive, steel, aluminium, pharmaceutical and aerospace sectors - which employ over 320,000 people across the UK. In the South-West alone, these sectors employed 29,450 people in 2023. The trade deal with India is expected to raise UK GDP by £4.8 billion, increase wages by £2.2 billion annually in the long run, and unlock opportunities in every corner of the UK. As a result of this deal South-West exports including lamb, cosmetics, and advanced manufacturing will benefit from reduced tariffs.
Together, the US and India deals support UK-wide growth, with the South-West already exporting goods worth £0.6 billion to India and £4.4 billion to the US in 2024.
Asked by: Layla Moran (Liberal Democrat - Oxford West and Abingdon)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment he has made of the potential merits of (a) implementing a defined standard for asbestos testing for cosmetics and (b) banning talc in (i) personal care and (ii) cosmetic products.
Answered by Justin Madders
Regulation is clear that cosmetics must be safe. To demonstrate compliance, a safety assessment must be completed by a qualified safety assessor.
Government intends to perform sector reviews of product regulation that will consider hazards that may impact consumer safety. To ensure that regulations reflects modern supply chains we recently introduced the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill enabling government to create a proportionate regulatory framework that will protect UK consumers from risk.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what assessment his Department has made of the potential impact of acrylate exposure from cosmetic nail treatments on (a) long-term health of people exposed and (b) NHS services.
Answered by Justin Madders
Legislation is clear that cosmetics must be safe. To demonstrate that a product is compliant with the requirements in the Cosmetic Regulation, a safety assessment must be completed by a qualified safety assessor. This includes examining the systemic exposure to individual ingredients used. The safety assessor must be satisfied that the product is safe before it can be sold.
As the regulator for product safety, OPSS is responsible for ensuring that consumer products are safe. We will take effective action where non-compliant products are identified. However, as a department we do not hold information regarding impacts to NHS services.
Asked by: Andrew Cooper (Labour - Mid Cheshire)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, whether his Department has made an assessment of the adequacy of regulation on (a) products containing acrylates linked to serious allergic reactions and (b) other aspects of the operation of nail salons.
Answered by Justin Madders
Cosmetics sold in the UK must meet some of the strictest safety requirements in the world. For products not covered by the Cosmetic Regulation, the General Product Safety Regulations provide a baseline of safety, requiring that only safe products, in their normal or reasonably foreseeable use, can be sold.
Nail salons are required to comply with various legislation including the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act. This requires operators to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the health, safety and welfare of their employees and that their clients are not exposed to risks to their health and safety.
Asked by: Andy MacNae (Labour - Rossendale and Darwen)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, when he plans to publish the outcome of his Department's closed consultation entitled The licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which closed on 28 October 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector, and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. We will set out the details of our approach in our response to the consultation on the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which we will publish as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Bishop of St Albans (Bishops - Bishops)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Merron on 7 November 2024 (HL1998), when they intend to publish feedback to the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures consultation, which ran from 2 September to 28 October 2023.
Answered by Baroness Merron - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. We will set out the details of our approach in our response to the consultation on the licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, which we will publish as soon as possible.
Asked by: Laura Kyrke-Smith (Labour - Aylesbury)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for his policies of his Department's consultation on The licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England, published on 2 September 2023.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
The Government is committed to taking action to address longstanding concerns about the safety of the cosmetics sector and is exploring options for further regulation in this area. This includes considering the proposals that the Department previously consulted on for the introduction of a licensing scheme for non-surgical cosmetic procedures in England. We will set out the details of our approach at the earliest opportunity.
Asked by: Mark Pritchard (Conservative - The Wrekin)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, if he will take steps to prevent the illegal (a) online sale and (b) importing of skin (i) whitening and (ii) lightening products which cause skin damage.
Answered by Justin Madders
Cosmetics products must comply with some of the strongest safety standards in the world before they can be placed on the GB market. Government works with local enforcement authorities to take effective action when products are identified that do not meet these safety requirements, ensuring unsafe items are removed from sale.
Government has introduced the Product Regulation and Metrology Bill, which explicitly recognises the role of online marketplaces to ensure consumers are protected from unsafe products. We intend to use the powers in the Bill to introduce requirements on e-commerce models to help prevent the sale of unsafe products online.