Right to free period products becomes law in Scotland

Public buildings such as schools, councils and colleges, have to supply free period products by law

Scotland has made public health history by making it the law for public settings to provide period products.

It is the first country in the world to protect the right to free sanitary products with new legislation that has come into force on Monday.

The Period Products Act means councils and education providers have to make the free items available to those who need them.

Since 2017, around £27m has been spent to provide access in public settings.

Labour MSP Monica Lennon campaigned for the legislation which was unanimously backed in the Scottish Parliament in 2020.

Ms Lennon said: "Local authorities and partner organisations have worked hard to make the legal right to access free period products a reality.

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"This is another big milestone for period dignity campaigners and grassroots movements which shows the difference that progressive and bold political choices can make.

"As the cost-of-living crisis takes hold, the Period Products Act is a beacon of hope which shows what can be achieved when politicians come together for the good of the people we serve."

Hey Girls, a social enterprise working to tackle period poverty in the UK, said period products should be as accessible as toilet roll in public bathrooms.

Georgie Nicholson from Hey Girls said Scotland providing free period products was a "really huge" milestone

Georgie Nicholson told BBC Radio's Good Morning Scotland that the organisation had run a study before the pandemic which indicated that one in four women in Scotland had faced period poverty at some point.

"There's a very simple way to describe period poverty: you go to the supermarket and you have to actually choose whether you can buy a bag of pasta or a box of tampons. It's that basic," she said.

"We hear of a lot of mothers going without their period protection just so they can feed their children and using things such as newspaper stuffed into socks or bread... because they're cheaper than period products."

Ms Nicholson added that Scotland becoming the first country in the world to provide free period products was a "really huge" milestone.

Scotland's social justice secretary Shona Robison said providing access to free period products was "fundamental to equality and dignity".

She added: "We are proud to be the first national government in the world to take such action.

"This is more important than ever at a time when people are making difficult choices due to the cost of living crisis.

"We never want anyone to be in a position where they cannot access period products."

'I had to rely on friends and family'

Shauna Gauntlett struggled with period poverty after her first son was born.

She told BBC Scotland sanitary products became a financial burden after she developed health problems after giving birth.

"No one quite tells you what happens when you give birth, what's normal, what to expect," she said.

"I had to rely on friends and family to get those products for me.

"I didn't know what I was experiencing at the time wasn't normal so in my case, I'd had stitches first, and obviously I needed medical intervention but until I got that medical intervention, I needed all those products."