Ink stink as minors tattooed

A DARWIN mum is calling for new legislation to be introduced to prevent minors from being tattooed after her 17-year-old daughter got permanently inked by a backyard tattooist.

tattoos

A DARWIN mum is calling for new legislation to be introduced to prevent minors from being tattooed after her 17-year-old daughter got permanently inked by a backyard tattooist.

The Northern Territory is the only Australian state or territory to not have a minimum age requirement for getting tattoos.

Durack resident Amber Williams said her anger led to tears when she discovered that her daughter had made an appointment to get a tattoo and there was nothing she could do to stop her.

"I thought kids had to get parental permission to get a tattoo but as I started looking into it I realised that wasn't the case, there's no law in the NT against it," she said.

tattoo

"I've since heard about children as young as 13 having it done.

"(My daughter is) classed as a child for everything else; she can't buy alcohol or vote, but she can get a tattoo.

"There's even a minimum age limit for body piercing, so why not on tattoos."

Ms Williams' daughter, a high school student, allegedly visited a "backyard tattooist" to get her forearm inked for $130.

"She wouldn't tell me the details about where she had it done," Ms Williams said.

Darwin City Tattoos owners Mim d'Abbs and Blue Selwyn said their workplace had a strict "no under-18s" policy.

"We don't think it's moralistic," they said. "We only accept photo ID - a driver's licence or passport only because anyone can create a fake student card."

Ms d'Abbs said she lobbied the NT government in 2010 to introduce an "above-18 age policy".

"They didn't listen, we got stonewalled," she said.

Health Minister Robyn Lambley did not respond to questions from the NT News yesterday.

A spokesman said a review of Summary Offences legislation was recently undertaken by the Department of the Attorney-General and Justice.