PEOPLE under-18 will be banned from using sunbeds after the House of Lords approved the Sunbed Regulation Bill, just ahead of the dissolution of Parliament.

The new law will mean that The Northern Echo’s campaign to ban youngsters from tanning booths has been successful two years after it started.

The Northern Echo launched its Sunbed Safety campaign in 2008 after 15-yearold Katie Turner, from Darlington, had to have hospital treatment for burns after a 20- minute session at a tanning salon.

Campaigners say the ban will save lives and prevent serious injuries.

In February last year, 14- year-old Kirsty McRae suffered first degree burns to 70 per cent of her body after spending £4 to use a sunbed.

Sunbeds are classified as dangerous as cigarettes by the World Health Organisation, with about 250,000 children aged between 11 and 17 using them in England.

Last night, the news was welcomed by a North-East environmental officer who has spent much of the past decade campaigning for tighter regulation of sunbeds.

Rob Llewellyn, principal environment health officer for Stockton Borough Council, said: “It now looks as if this legislation is going to squeeze through before Parliament is dissolved. It’s fantastic and it is what we have been waiting for. It is practical and enforceable.”

Mr Llewellyn launched a campaign to impose stricter regulation of sunbeds in the Stockton borough area in 2005.

It was widely copied by other councils by the UK and helped fuel moves to ban under-18s from using tanning booths and salons.

But Mr Llewellyn said the new legislation was effectively only “a half-way house”.

“We also need to get the message out to over-18s and the wider public that they have to be careful about abusing sunbeds too.”

Jenny Morris, principal policy officer for the Chartered Institute of Environmental Health, said: “We now have sensible measures that will help save lives and prevent some of the very horrific burning incidents that we have seen recently.”

But Ms Morris said we must not forget that the same risks for over-18s apply.

“We would like to see unstaffed, coin-operated sunbeds prohibited; well trained staff providing good advice, and information about the health risk should be made available as part of the ensuing regulations.”

The Bill received cross party support.