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- Claire Diamond
- BBC Scotland
Image released, Getty Images
Many women in Scotland cannot afford menstrual hygiene products
Scotland became the first country in the world to provide free women’s health products during the menstrual cycle, to address the inability of women and girls to obtain them during this difficult time.
The Scottish Parliament unanimously passed the Menstrual Products Law unanimously on Tuesday.
Under this law, local authorities will be obliged to provide free products needed by women during menstruation, such as tampons and sanitary napkins, “to anyone who needs them”.
Labor MP, Monica Lennon, presented the bill and since 2016 has led a campaign to eradicate “menstrual poverty”, the inability of women and girls to provide the necessary funds to have safe and healthy means during the their menstrual cycle.
Monica said it was “practical and progressive” legislation that became more prominent due to the coronavirus pandemic.
She added: “The menstrual cycle does not stop due to epidemics. Therefore, it is now of the utmost importance to provide basic health products such as tampons, sanitary pads and reusable materials.”
What is the poverty of the menstrual cycle?
Poor menstruation suffers from women who are unable to provide the necessary funds to purchase healthy products during their menstrual period.
Because menstruation lasts an average of five days, health products can cost as much as £ 8 a month, and some women have a hard time bearing the cost.
How big is this problem?
A survey by the Young Scott Foundation of over 2,000 people found that one in four women at school, college or university in Scotland suffer from an inability to provide the health products needed for menstruation.
The study also found that around 10% of girls in Britain are unable to purchase health products, while 15% of them struggle to save costs.
19% of the girls were forced to use other methods not very suitable to cope with this circumstance due to their cost.
In addition to a poor menstrual cycle, the bill addresses the bad stigma associated with periods. Researchers say it’s a particular problem for young girls. The study found that 71% of people between the ages of 14 and 21 felt embarrassed to purchase menstrual health products.
The bill also addresses the impact of this period on education, as researchers found that nearly half of the girls surveyed had been absent from school during this period.
Image released, Getty Images
The Scottish Parliament has passed a law allowing the free supply of tampons and sanitary pads to all menstruating women
What difference will the law make?
Scottish law requires local authorities to provide free menstrual supplies.
The country’s 32 local councils will decide on the practical arrangements necessary for implementation, which will ensure that “anyone” can access various types of health products “with reasonable ease and dignity”.
An advisory paper also suggested the use of a health advice system model that provides free condoms.
In the Glasgow and Clyde area, for example, anyone who wants free condoms can order them from a variety of locations including general practice clinics, pharmacies, colleges and universities, and they can be requested via a special form so you don’t have to verbally request them.
The scheme will be implemented within two years from the date the legislation becomes law.
The bill says that, in the future, ministers may require other “specific public service agencies” to provide free menstrual supplies.
The law also includes the free provision of these supplies to schools, colleges and universities.
Previously, the Scottish government had decided to support the bill in principle despite having opposed it earlier, due to “big and real concerns” about how it would work.
The government proposed major amendments to the bill during its presentation in Parliament, which means it is now supported by all parties in the capital, Edinburgh.
What are the current measures to treat poverty in the menstrual cycle?
Tampons, sanitary towels and some reusable products are now funded in schools, colleges and universities in Scotland.
The Scottish government has provided £ 5.2 million in funding to support this, with half a million given to the Fare Share charity to provide free menstrual supplies to low-income families.
The government has also provided another 4 million pounds to city councils so that the distribution perimeter can be expanded to other public places, as well as another 50 thousand pounds to be paid free in sports clubs.
Some products are already provided for free in some places, including numerous bars and restaurants, and their owners take on this task, which is a gesture of goodwill and not a mandatory requirement.
Image released, Getty Images
The supply of free women’s health products came after a previous experience of providing free condoms to men
What is happening elsewhere?
The UK government has a PMS Poverty Task Force, with the primary focus on addressing stigma and education during menstruation. It also wants to improve the accessibility of its supplies.
Additionally, menstrual protection products were introduced free of charge in all primary and secondary schools in England in January.
In the United States, some states have passed laws requiring free menstrual products in schools.
Tax on tampons
Since 2001, Britain has imposed a 5% value added tax on menstrual products, as EU rules mean that this “refund tax” cannot be further abolished or reduced.
However, for the past five years, the UK government has invested the money raised from the value added tax on menstrual products into a tampon tax fund which is used to support women’s organizations and charities.
Supermarket chain Tesco reduced the price of products sold by 5% to cover the value added tax imposed on these items.
Now that Britain has left the European Union, it will be up to the government to set the rate of value added tax applied to menstrual products, as ministers say they want to completely abolish the tax on women’s health products in the first place. possible.
There are some countries that have reduced or eliminated taxes on menstrual products, including 12 states in the United States and countries such as Kenya, Canada, Australia, India, Colombia, Malaysia, Nicaragua, Jamaica, Nigeria, Uganda, Lebanon, and Trinidad and Tobago.
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