The BCA engaged with MSPs and the Health Committee during scrutiny of Scotland’s Non-surgical Procedures Bill, helping ensure chiropractic remained within the healthcare exemption framework.
Context
The Non-surgical Procedures and Functions of Medical Reviewers (Scotland) Bill, introduced in October 2025, aims to strengthen regulation of high-risk non-surgical cosmetic procedures such as injectables. It includes an exemption list, allowing certain regulated healthcare professionals to carry out these procedures outside of the full licensing regime.
In February 2026, amendments were proposed during Stage 2 scrutiny that would have removed both the General Chiropractic Council and the General Osteopathic Council from that exemption list.
During committee discussion, questions were raised about whether professions such as osteopathy and chiropractic should be included.
MSP Sandesh Gulhane introduced amendments to the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, seeking to remove the General Chiropractic Council and the General Osteopathic Council from the list of healthcare professionals exempted from the bill's restrictions.
The practical consequences would have been significant.
What we did
We submitted a letter to the Health, Social Care and Sports Select Committee, setting out the regulatory framework that already governs chiropractic practice, the training requirements for BCA-registered practitioners, and the public health rationale for retaining the exemption.
The full letter is available here.
We also contacted MSPs who had raised concerns, offering further information and the opportunity for direct discussion. In many cases, policy-level concerns about chiropractic appear to stem from limited familiarity rather than fixed opposition, which means there is real value in early, constructive engagement.
Outcome
At Stage 2 of the Bill's passage, we are pleased to say that no amendments to remove chiropractors were tabled. The profession remains on the exemption list alongside other recognised healthcare professions.
Significance
This outcome holds huge significance, showing how professional recognition can be shaped in real time.
The argument that chiropractors should be treated differently from other healthcare professionals does surface periodically in policy discussions. This example shows is that those positions are not always fixed, they are often formed and adjusted during the legislative process itself.
Engaging early, with clear evidence and a willingness to explain the profession in practical terms, is often more effective than responding once positions have hardened.
That is the approach that we take in our policy work at the BCA, and it is also something that our individual members contribute to every time they describe the profession in terms that resonate with colleagues in other disciplines.
The BCA will continue to monitor the Bill's progress and any further legislative developments affecting members in Scotland.