Hair and Beauty Sector

Contributions

1. Vikki Slade (Mid Dorset and North Poole) (LD)Liberal Democrat

   Hairdressing and barber businesses are a core component of our high streets. They bring millions of repeat visits every year, provide local jobs, improve our emotional wellbeing and cannot be replaced by artificial intelligence or moved online. However, they are in crisis, with apprentice starts reduced by 84% since 2015, employment likely to fall by 93% by the end of this Parliament, and salon owners seeing the VAT rate as a penalty for employment and growth. The more than 2,000 signatories of the petition request “that the House of Commons urges the Government to introduce a permanently lower VAT rate of 10% for professional hairdressing, barbering, beauty, spa and aesthetics services.” Following is the full text of the petition: [ The petition of residents of the United Kingdom, Declares that hairdressing and barbering businesses are vital for local economies through employing locally, providing training to young people and bringing millions of repeat visits to high streets throughout the year; further declares that these businesses provide people-powered services that cannot be moved online, automated, replaced by Artificial Intelligence or relocated overseas; further declares that the hair and beauty sector lost one in five employees in 2025; further declares that this loss was the largest loss of employment of any occupation in the UK, leaving just 68,500 employed workers; further declares that this is the equivalent of 20 employing salons closing every working day; further declares that apprenticeship starts have fallen by approximately 84% since 2015; further declares that CBI Economics warned in 2025 that employment in the hair and beauty sector could fall by 93% by the end of this Parliament if these trends continue; and further declares that the 20% VAT rate on salons is viewed by the sector as a penalty for employment and growth as, for businesses operating on narrow margins, VAT registration can make recruitment and apprenticeships financially impossible. The petitioners therefore request that the House of Commons urges the Government to introduce a permanently lower VAT rate of 10% for professional hairdressing, barbering, beauty, spa and aesthetics services. And the petitioners remain, etc. ] [P003255]

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