BRITS can finally get nail and beauty treatments done again as salons will be allowed to reopen from Monday – but facial treatments will stay banned.
Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden announced that nail bars, salons, spas, tattoo parlours and tanning salons this evening, saying “normal life is slowly returning”.
The beauty industry is one of the last group of businesses to be able to fling open their doors again – after pubs, restaurants, cafes and hotels were able to reopen from July 5.
Treatments such as manicures, pedicures and body waxes will be able to restart.
But ones that involve touching another person’s face – such as facials and eyebrow threading will stay banned because of the risk of spreading germs.
But they will have to follow strict guidance on keeping salons clean because of the close-contact work.
The reopening comes after MPs called on the Government for action telling them the beauty industry was being “decimated” by continued closures.
Labour MPs Carolyn Harris and Judith Cummins, Chair of the Beauty Aesthetics and Wellbeing APPG, said the Governmen was not taking the issue serious because it was dominated by women.
In a letter to the PM they said: “It is difficult to see that this is a laughing matter. Were people laughing because this is an industry in which women predominate?
“And is it because of the Government’s perception that this is just an industry of ‘nail bars’ that you have failed to give any indication as to when the industry can reopen?”
What was announced this evening:
- Grassroots sport will be able to restart from this weekend – but clubs have to submit coronavirus “action plans”
- Brits will be able to hit the gym or go swimming as well as they reopen from July 25
- Outdoor pools can reopen from Saturday
- Theatres and music venues can start performances outdoors, and there will be some trials of indoor peformances
They outlined how the industry contributes a total of £28.4 billion to the UK’s economy and employs a total of 370,200 people across the entire industry.
“The beauty industry in this country is being decimated,” they said in the letter.
