Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 3 February 2021
661. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health if he will consider bringing forward legislation to make period products such as sanitary pads and tampons available for free to persons that need them similar to that signed into law recently by the Scottish Parliament; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5201/21]
Amharc ar fhreagra662. Deputy Thomas Pringle asked the Minister for Health if he will support the passage of opposition legislation similar to that signed into law recently by the Scottish Parliament to make period products such as sanitary pads and tampons available for free to persons that need them; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [5202/21]
Amharc ar fhreagraI propose to take Questions Nos. 661 and 662 together.
The National Strategy for Women and Girls (NSWG) Strategy Committee, now led by the Department of Children, Equality, Disability, Integration and Youth, established a sub-committee on period poverty in 2019, chaired by the Department of Health.
In line with the recommendations of Oireachtas motions passed in early 2019, its remit included establishing the extent of period poverty in Ireland and population cohorts most at risk. The Terms of Reference also included giving due consideration to the circumstances of young people under the age of 25, targeting of high-risk groups, stigma reduction and mainstreaming period poverty mitigation measures across all relevant Government Departments and public bodies.
In addition, the Programme for Government 2020, makes the following specific commitment under ‘Better Opportunities through Education and Research’ - “Provide a range of free, adequate, safe, and suitable period products in all educational publicly-funded settings (including schools, colleges and HEIs), to ensure that no students are disadvantaged in their education by period poverty.”
The NSWG Sub-Committee on Period Poverty submitted a report of its work at the most recent meeting of the NSWG Strategy Committee, held on December 9th, 2020. The Report is at design stage and it is envisaged that it will be launched in February. The report considers the need to legislate in Ireland for this matter.
Two Private Members Bills on Period Poverty have been proposed recently. The Free Provision of Period Products Bill 2021 (Bill 4) has been proposed by Senator Lorraine Clifford-Lee and sponsored by Senators Catherine Ardagh and Mary Fitzpatrick. An additional Bill, the Period Products (Free Provision) Bill, 2021 (Bill 2) has also been proposed, by Senators Rebecca Moynihan, Ivana Bacik, Annie Hoey, Marie Sherlock and Mark Wall.
Bill 4 seeks to make period products available to everyone who needs to use them, free of charge. The Bill also proposes that the Minister for Health may, by regulation, make a scheme to set out and regulate access to free period products by those who need access to such products. Bill 2 has similar aims, seeking to make period products freely available across all public facilities and through publicly funded services.
A debate on the Free Provision of Period Products Bill, 2021, is currently scheduled in Seanad Éireann on 8th February, 2021.
