MP praised for breaking House of Commons taboo by discussing her period

An MP has been praised for breaking a taboo in the House of Commons after telling the speaker she was on her period.

Scottish Labour’s Danielle Rowley, who represents Midlothian, “apologised for being late to a House of Commons women and equalities debate, saying she was on her period and it had cost her £25 so far this week”, reports The Guardian.

She called for action on the cost of sanitary products. “We know the average cost of a period in the UK over a year is £500. Many women can’t afford this. What is the minister doing to address period poverty?” she asked.

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One in 10 young women in the UK cannot afford sanitary products, according to a study by UK Plan International.

Several MPs raised concerns about period poverty during the debate, with shadow women and equalities minister Carolyn Harris accusing the Government of failing to provide support.

She said: “Why is the UK Government failing to provide support to tackle this growing problem and leaving it to charities and individual groups like Beauty Bank, a cosmetics equivalent of food banks, organised by Jo Jones and Sali Hughes, to fill the gap?”

Women and Equalities Minister Victoria Atkins said the Government had invested £1.5 million in the Brook Young People project, Let’s Talk Periods.

“And the Government is committed to removing the VAT rate on sanitary products when we leave the EU which will help with the costs of sanitary products.”

After being congratulated for her speech, Rowley - “who buys sanitary products out of her own money to give to women who come to her office”, says the Daily Record - tweeted light-heartedly: “My cramps are pretty epic to be fair.”

The MP told the Daily Mirror her speech was “quite spontaneous” but “something I've wanted to raise for a while”.

“It's something that's really important but isn't really spoken about enough,” she said. “I think there is still a taboo. I talk about my period quite a lot, I will talk about it to male friends and colleagues, and generally it's fine.”

“But I think sometimes, if you are talking about it perhaps with older men or women, there's a bit of ‘oh, why are you saying that?’. I hope me talking about it in the chamber will help break down the taboo and help give women more confidence”, Rowley said.