Community / Wishart says free period products law is a ‘proud moment for Scotland’
SHETLAND MSP Beatrice Wishart says she was “delighted” to offer her support to a bill which will make period products free for anyone who needs them.
The Period Products (Free Provision) (Scotland) Bill was approved by MSPs on Tuesday.
It means Scotland is the first country in the world to offer free period products for all.
The aims is to tackle ‘period poverty’, which is when people cannot afford to readily access sanitary products.
Under the law the Scottish Government must set up a Scotland-wide scheme to allow anyone who needs period products to get them free of charge.
Schools, colleges and universities must also make a range of period products available for free, in their toilets.
The law offers a legal framework for what already is in action in some areas of the country; Shetland Islands Council, for instance, already provides access to free period products to people who attend schools.
Back in 2018 NorthLink Ferries also said it would be providing free products on board its vessels.
The law was proposed by Labour MSP Monica Lennon, and it was unanimously approved.
Shetland MSP Beatrice Wishart said after the vote that “period poverty has no place in the place in the 21st Century”.
“Nobody should be left without the period products they need and no one should be missing out on work, education or leisure because of stigma around menstruation,” she said.
“This is a proud moment for Scotland and I congratulate Monica Lennon for her tireless efforts campaigning for period dignity for all.”
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