Quebec provincial minister Christine St. Pierre said she wants to make sure models are in good health and she hopes her proposed charter would help stem anorexia, a dangerous eating disorder, in young women. (Gabriel Bouys/AFP/Getty Images)
Christine St. Pierre said she would form a committee to look at adopting a charter that would prompt the fashion industry to take responsibility for the health of its models, according to a CBC News report.
St. Pierre said she wants to make sure models are in good health and she hopes such measures would help stem anorexia, a dangerous eating disorder, in young women.
"We have to change the mentality," St. Pierre told CBC News. "We are in a position to say to them 'OK, you have to do something.' But I'm not looking for a law, I'm just looking for an involvement from the fashion industry."
St. Pierre said the committee would be comprised of people from the fashion industry, and she hopes the charter will be adopted in March.
"If we work with the fashion industry they will be able to reach young women and young men and to talk to them," she said. "This is what we are looking for, and also we want to address this problem with the health minister and all the businesses involved."
Jean-François Daviau, producer of Montreal Fashion Week and co-president of Sensation Mode, told CBC News that while he believes a charter would be a good idea, the models themselves need support.
"We don't want to point at her and say 'You're the problem. That's another issue. We have to be very careful on the impact of such an action."
