Towie star urges cosmetic surgery 'transparency'

Bobby Norris, pictured here with BBC Essex presenter Sonia Watson, is urging influencers to "be honest" about their cosmetic procedures

A reality TV star says "transparency is key" when it comes to influencers being honest about cosmetic procedures they have undergone.

Bobby Norris, who appeared in The Only Way is Essex from 2012 to 2021, said he had been offered a variety of cosmetic procedures over the years as a result of appearing on television.

"Be honest about it - don't say it's down to a moisturiser or a product, when really you've been under the knife," Norris said.

But the Liberal Democrat MP for Chelmsford, Marie Goldman, said she was concerned more transparency could lead to cosmetic procedures being "normalised".

"With transparency comes normalisation," she said.

"If a lot of celebrities are saying I've had this procedure and it was fine, it becomes - to children - a very normal thing to do."

Norris, pictured here in 2017, said he had been offered a host of cosmetic procedures over the years

Norris, who has been acting as a guest editor on the BBC Essex breakfast show with Sonia Watson, opened up about his relationship with cosmetic procedures.

"When I joined TOWIE fifteen years ago everyone was offering it, and because it was free and you see yourself in magazines you think I'll have a little bit of this, what's the worst that can happen?" he said.

"I had people asking me if I wanted a top up every two months."

Norris quit the show in 2021 after being a regular cast member for more than a decade. He is now calling for more reality TV stars and influencers to "be honest" about their cosmetic surgery.

He told BBC Essex: "There are girls out there who will go to a gym, do three squats and film it for social media.

"They'll then jet off to Turkey and get a BBL (Brazilian Bum Lift) and they will make out that they got their bum organically from doing squats."

Chelmsford MP, Liberal Democrat Marie Goldman, said she was worried about normalising cosmetic procedures

Goldman said she believed it was "quite obvious" when people had cosmetic surgery - and the results looked "quite strange", adding: "It doesn't always look as good as they think it does".

"People are getting injections in public toilets and what we're seeing is it's gone terribly wrong and they've got terrible infections from it. So we have to acknowledge there is a risk that goes with it," she added.

As it stands, a licence is not required to perform cosmetic procedures like botox injections and dermal fillers in England, but this could change if an amendment brought forward in 2022 is passed by parliament.

The government has previously suggested making changes to the Health and Care Act, which would bring in a scheme to protect consumers from unlicensed practitioners.