PERIOD PRODUCTS FOR ALL

Scotland Makes History With Plan to Stock Pads and Tampons in Bathrooms Throughout the Land

Period products will be accessible in schools and public organizations, and the new bill will require bathrooms to remain stocked.

Scottish parliament on Tuesday voted unanimously to make tampons and pads free for anyone that needs them in the country, making them the first in the world to do so, according to Forbes. Under a nationwide program, the bill will require period products to be accessible in schools and public organizations and will require bathrooms to remain stocked. According to a survey in May conducted by the international children’s charity Plan International UK, nearly one-third of women aged 14 to 21 in the United Kingdom have had trouble accessing or affording period products during the COVID-19 pandemic. Labour member Monica Lennon introduced the bill in April 2019 and said the goal of it is to get rid of “period poverty.” First Minister of Scotland Nicola Sturgeon tweeted Tuesday that she was “proud to vote for this groundbreaking legislation,” which she said is an “important policy for women and girls.”