By Emma Kelsall
While 2020 may have brought us wave after wave of bad news and misfortunes, British women (and anyone else with a period) are rejoicing. The United Kingdom government has announced the abolition of the “tampon tax,” marking the successful conclusion to a 20-year struggle of women’s rights activists.
The “tampon tax” has been a hotly debated issue for over two decades. European Union laws brand tampons, sanitary towels and menstrual cups as “non-essential luxury items.” Due to the products falling into the category of luxuries, women in the United Kingdom are required to pay a 5% VAT (Value Added Tax) on menstrual products.
Now, 3-7 days of constant bleeding, mood swings and cramps that doctors have concluded are as painful as experiencing a heart attack might not exactly seem like a luxury. So what does the European Union consider essential items that have no VAT? To name a few: edible cake decorations, adult diapers, herbal tea, chickpeas, pitta bread, and even crocodile meat.
Rishi Sunak – Chancellor of the Exchequer – announced that in the 2020 budget, the surcharge to sanitary products will be abandoned. The law will be effective as of January 1, the first day when European Union laws no longer apply to the United Kingdom. It is estimated that a menstruating person will save around £40 – equivalent to around $53.17 – in their lifetime. But why is this tax cut so important?
The abolition of the “tampon tax” marks a huge step in the war against period poverty. Period poverty is defined as a lack of access to sanitary products, menstrual hygiene education, toilets, hand washing facilities, or waste management. While the US has made significant progress against period poverty by providing free sanitary products in school bathrooms, deeming them as essential as toilet paper, more work needs to be done worldwide.
In a study of UK girls aged 14-21, 1 in 7 have struggled to afford sanitary products, while 1 in 10 have been unable to. More than a quarter have used a sanitary product for longer than its intended use because they couldn’t afford a fresh one, putting them at risk of Toxic Shock Syndrome (TSS). Period poverty also prevents women and girls from performing menial tasks, as almost half of girls have missed an entire day of school because of their period, with almost a third missing more than one day of school.
Even continentally, the European Union’s classification of sanitary products is causing menstruation to become a significant economic disadvantage. While the Republic of Ireland is currently the only tampon tax-free European country, VAT rates on sanitary products are as high over 20% in many Scandinavian countries. Meanwhile, some countries are planning not to abolish the tax, but rather to reduce it, with Spain planning to take their VAT from 10% to 4% and Switzerland planning to reduce their tampon tax from 7.7% to 2.5%.
While the United Kingdom takes its first step towards ending period poverty, there is so much more work to be done all around the globe. In Nepal, women are banished to huts during their menstrual cycles as they are considered “impure.” In Uganda, girls skip school while menstruating to avoid being teased by their classmates, causing some to miss as much as 20% of the school year. In Kenya, 50% of women do not have access to sanitary products, while in India, 12% of women cannot afford them.
However, many charities are fighting to end period poverty, such as ActionAid. ActionAid helps to fight period poverty in third world countries by training women and girls to make safe, reusable sanitary pads so they always have access to clean and affordable sanitary products.
Furthermore, in their girls’ clubs and safe spaces in schools, they provide information about periods, sex, and pregnancy, so girls are better informed about their bodies. For more information about global period poverty and what you can do to help end it visit https://www.actionaid.org.uk/about-us/what-we-do/womens-economic-empowerment/period-poverty .
The abolition of the “tampon tax” in the United Kingdom marks a winning battle in the war against period poverty, and maybe the first glimmer of hope in 2020.
