Mark Lazarowicz, MP for Edinburgh North and Leith, has called on the UK Parliament to follow Scotland’s lead and ban sunbeds for under-18s.

The Scottish Parliament voted to ban the sale or hire of a sunbed to anyone aged under 18 in June 2008 because of evidence that it dramatically increases the risk of developing skin cancer in later life.

Mark is strongly supporting Julie Morgan MP’s Bill at Westminster which seeks to introduce similar legislation for the rest of the UK. To learn more about the Bill click here

Mark said:

“The UK Parliament can learn a great deal from Holyrood, both in terms of policy and the way it operates. There should be much greater interchange of ideas between the different parliaments and this issue is a good example.

“I was very shocked to hear how dangerous sunbeds can be to children’s health – and how many under-18s seem to be using them. The number of people in the UK diagnosed with skin cancer is rising faster than any other cancer.  

There is strong public support for a change in the law and the UK Parliament should act now and follow Scotland’s lead.”

Mark was attending an event at Westminster organised by Cancer Research UK where MPs heard evidence that using sunbeds for the first time under the age of 35 increases the risk of the most dangerous form of skin cancer by 75 per cent.

The ban on sunbeds for under-18s came into force in Scotland at the beginning of December 2009. For more on this click here.

Scotland has also led the way in addressing other issues such as social care for the elderly on which the main political parties are now forming policies for the rest of the UK.

Recent interest south of the border in the way the Scottish Parliament operates has focused on the Committee system which is seen as more flexible and the greater openness to public petitioning.

As the relationship between the different Parliaments and Assemblies within the UK develops, hopefully they will be increasingly open to learning from each other, both in terms of policies and practices. The UK needn't be a static entity and there is much that Westminster can learn from Holyrood.