Pat O'Neill (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This matter concerns the need for the Minister for Children and Youth Affairs to consider enacting legislation to regulate the piercing and tattooing industry in Ireland to safeguard children under 18 years, although I understand it is to be dealt with by the Minister of State at the Department of Health.

In Ireland we have no legislation on regulation of the tattooing and body piercing industry concerning the age of consent of our youth or their health, well-being and safety. Having a tattoo or a body piercing is a big decision and, in most cases, a permanent one. With the evolution from the metrosexual to the birth of the spornosexual, there is huge pressure, through the media and celebrities, placed on our youth to customise their bodies through tattooing and piercing to keep up with the latest fashion trends. We are all too aware of the medical consequences, such as eating disorders, that some children and teenagers develop to look like their celebrity icons. With this additional pressure now on our youth, and in an industry that is growing and unregulated, we need to ensure the health, well-being and safety of our youth. Trends and fashion change all the time and every teenager wants to be up to date with the latest fashion or trend and there is nothing wrong with that. However, when a trend or fashion becomes permanent for an individual, we need to ensure the decision was not one taken for the wrong reasons, such as through peer pressure or because of the media.

Adults do not always make the right decision either when it comes to tattoos. Many celebrities, such as Megan Fox, Kelly Osbourne, Johnny Depp and 50 Cent, have had their tattoos removed as they stated that they wanted to clean up their image. It is not that they immediately regretted getting tattoos in the first place, but some of the reasons they listed why they spent thousands of dollars having them removed were that they no longer identified with certain things that initially inspired them or felt that they had held them back from future prospects. The procedure of having tattoos removed is not only prohibitive for the majority but the pain experienced going through the procedure of having them removed is excruciating. Tattoos are forever, so "think before you ink".

This is a growing industry and according to the HSE there are no registration requirements, no minimum structural or operational standards to be attained before opening such a business, no basic training requirements for staff, no age of consent, and no medical history requirements for those availing of such services. Consequently, these premises are not included in any inspection programme by environmental health officers and receive no regular or routine visits from any statutory inspectorate. If not performed to the highest standards, tattooing and body piercing can potentially be an extremely hazardous practice. The risks associated with tattooing and body piercing range from acute infections to allergic reactions and can occur when the piercing or tattooing equipment becomes contaminated from contact with dirty surfaces or dirty hands, or from the infected body fluids or blood of the staff member or a previous client.

While most people associate tattooing with serious infectious risks such as hepatitis B, hepatitis C or HIV, even the most localised infection can be life threatening if it enters the blood stream and goes untreated. In addition, there is also a risk of an allergic reaction to the inks or metals used or the latex gloves worn by the service provider. Piercings are not permanent; they can close up but do leave a mark. Tattoos are permanent. I ask the Minister of State to consider regulating this growing industry as a matter of urgency to protect our youth. Parental guidance and consent should be required for those under 18 years of age.