'Cosmetic cowboys' behind high street procedures warned 'we are coming for you' in crackdown

'Cosmetic cowboys' behind high street procedures warned 'we are coming for you' in crackdown A public consultation has been launched as the Government reveal a plan to crackdown on cosmetic cowboys and regulate the 'wild west' industry In a dramatic message to ‘cosmetic cowboys’ risking lives, the Health Minister warned them: "We are coming for you. We are stopping you" as she announced new rules. The Government has launched a 12-week public consultation and a crackdown on dodgy people performing procedures like liquid Brazilian Butt Lifts (BBLs) on the high street. The move has been welcomed as a “brilliant” first step - but campaigners stress it needs to happen fast, as botched procedures being performed in the UK's High Streets, have escalated to a “horror film” level. The Department of Health and Social Care announced potentially deadly filler procedures such as BBLs can now only be carried out by qualified medics such as doctors, working for Care Quality Commission regulated providers. And those ‘cowboys’ risking lives could face a jail sentence or hefty fines of more than £4,000. Cosmetic surgery and other high-risk procedures will be banned for under-18s and the Government also says it remains committed to bringing in a licensing scheme to ensure "lower risk" treatments such as Botox and lip fillers remain safe. Ashton Collins, from long-term campaigners Save Face, also welcomed the move but says ‘rogue operators’ should face jail. She said they had now escalated to performing dodgy surgeries with scalpels. “It is absolutely good news, any move to regulate these cowboys is positive,” she said. But she revealed Save Face are now seeing more cases of bodged eyelid lifts, dodgy liposuction and even vaginal surgery, performed by unqualified ‘cowboys’. The Mirror has been fighting alongside ‘Save Face’ to demand regulation for the ‘wild west’ beauty industry, since Britain’s first death linked to a liquid BBL in 2024. Mum-of-five, Alice Webb, aged 33 from Wotton-under-Edge, died in hospital after falling ill following a non-surgical BBL. After hearing the news Alice’s sister, April Palmer, 37, who has been supporting Save Face, said: “We welcome the Government’s announcement of a public consultation on liquid BBLs and other high-risk cosmetic procedures... As a family, we are asking for Alice’s Law to be implemented and for liquid BBL procedures to be restricted, as a matter of urgency, to appropriately qualified surgeons only. “We believe this will prevent avoidable harm, provide better protection for people considering cosmetic procedures and spare other families the same heartbreak.” Health minister Karin Smyth praised those women who have been fighting for change and praised the Mirror’s campaign. She said: "If you're planning to undergo a major cosmetic procedure, you deserve to know you're in safe hands - not risking your life with a rogue operator." Speaking to The Mirror, the minister sent a message to ‘Cosmetic Cowboys’ saying: “We’re coming for you and we are stopping you. I use the words ‘cowboys’, that’s absolutely right. It is a bit of a wild west. We want to make sure that is not the case. It will be a criminal activity. “Clearly in extreme cases, imprisonment may be part of that and fines. How to enforce the law is a matter for the courts and the criminal justice system. I am really shocked about the way people are operating and the lack of regulation and also the lack of training for some of these people. Making it safe is a big priority. “If it’s very cheap and it looks a bit too good to be true and it’s run out of someone’s back room then don’t do it. We want to make this a good industry. This is a good business for lots of women and brings much joy to people who want to have some of these treatments but we want to make it safe.” The minister said of the Mirror’s fight for change: “Thanks for running this great campaign.” Ashton from Save Face added: “We have been campaigning for years to get these high risk treatments taken off the high street. These are people with no scruples or no moral compass and will probably continue to do this after the law comes in. So our biggest hope is for a speedy turnaround on the legislation and to make sure they are serious when it comes to policing and enforcing these rules, nothing short of a prison sentence will stop some of these rogue operators.” She said Save Face and the Mirror’s campaign has helped see a reduction in dodgy BBL procedures but says other surgeries are being carried out instead by ‘backstreet operators’. But she is worried about the escalation of lay people doing operations involving scalpels in people’s living rooms. “Belpharaoplasty’s are very popular at the moment. Even when we expose these people carrying out this surgery with pets running around. There are comments underneath saying ‘can I get a number?’ 'Can I book in?' It’s insane. People need protecting from themselves. We have seen facelifts involving scalpels, it’s shocking. "Anything you can think of, they are doing. The vaginaplasty surgeries that have been carried out are more akin to female mutilation. Lip lifts involving an incision under the nose." She told of one Liposuction procedure when someone went for - what they thought - was a non surgical option. Ashton said: "She lay down on the treatment couch in a salon. Two women doing the treatment were from Russia or Ukraine so there was a language barrier. She felt she was being injected and she was like ‘what was going on?’ "They said they just needed to numb the area and she thought ‘That’s a bit strange’ before she knew it they carried out surgical liposuction. They’d brought equipment cheaply over the internet and it turned out it was dental suction cannula. It did not suck out any fat, but what it did because it had quite a pointy end, it pierced her internal organs. She had to have reconstruction bowel surgery, it was just horrendous. These are things that sound like they are from a horror film. It’s terrible.” The Government's proposed new rules would stop under-18s having risky cosmetic or wellbeing treatments, while fillers are already restricted for children under a separate law. Under the new regulations, treatments that involve injecting fillers anywhere other than the face, such as BBLs, would be legally defined as cosmetic surgical procedures - meaning they can only be performed by qualified medics. Other high-risk treatments such as deep chemical peels, vampire facials and some laser procedures would be restricted to doctors, dentists, some nurses, midwives and pharmacists. Those who flout the rules could be hit with unlimited fines or fixed penalties up to £4,000. Health minister Karin Smyth said: "If you're planning to undergo a major cosmetic procedure, you deserve to know you're in safe hands - not risking your life with a rogue operator. These changes mean that only properly trained professionals can carry out the most serious, high-risk procedures, and that young people will be shielded from treatments that can go badly wrong. We want to drive cosmetic cowboys out of the market and raise standards across the board, giving reputable businesses a fair chance to thrive by helping people identify safe, qualified providers they can trust." The Government will launch a consultation asking for input from doctors, regulators and businesses to draw up draft regulations. The blueprint will then go through the parliamentary process, which is currently planned for spring 2027. Victoria Brownlie, chief policy and sustainability officer at the British Beauty Council, said: "Over a number of years, the line between a beauty treatment and a medical procedure has blurred. A lack of regulation in what has become a booming market has led to an exploitation of these gaps, placing members of the public at serious risk. I believe this is a vital step toward the required regulation and commend the Government for tackling this issue head-on.”