首個為女性免費(fèi)提供衛(wèi)生用品的國家

Another reason to visit and love Scotland: yesterday the country’s parliament voted almost unanimously to make women’s sanitary products freely available. Scottish women will be able to pick up tampons and pads at places like pharmacies and community centers.

我們又有了一個去蘇格蘭旅游并愛上它的理由：昨天該國議會投票，幾乎全票通過為女性免費(fèi)提供衛(wèi)生用品。蘇格蘭的女人們將能夠在藥房和社區(qū)中心等地領(lǐng)取衛(wèi)生棉條和衛(wèi)生巾。

The Period Products (Free Provision) Scotland bill, which is expected to pass through its remaining legislative hurdles, is a “real signal to people in this country about how seriously parliament takes gender equality,” said the bill’s proposer, parliament member Monica Lennon. Two years ago, Scotland began providing free sanitary products to schools and universities.

《蘇格蘭(免費(fèi)提供)經(jīng)期用品法案》的提議者同時也是議會成員的Monica Lennon說，預(yù)計這項法案能通過剩余的立法障礙，它是“給該國人民傳遞的真實信號，體現(xiàn)議會認(rèn)真對待兩性平等”。兩年前，蘇格蘭開始為學(xué)校和大學(xué)免費(fèi)提供衛(wèi)生用品。

Women typically spend over $2000 on sanitary products. A 2018 survey by Young Scot found that a quarter of young women struggled to afford sanitary products, a common scenario known as “period poverty.”

女性衛(wèi)生用品的花銷通常超過2000美元。2018年Young Scot(青年信息慈善機(jī)構(gòu))進(jìn)行的調(diào)查發(fā)現(xiàn)四分之一的年輕女性買不起衛(wèi)生用品，這種情況很常見，被稱為“經(jīng)期貧困”。

Tampon and pad prices have long been a political issue in the U.K. due to the so-called Tampon Tax, the 5% tax rate on sanitary products, a rate set by the EU.

英國有所謂的“衛(wèi)生棉條稅”，所以衛(wèi)生棉條和衛(wèi)生巾的價格一直都是政治問題。歐盟制定的衛(wèi)生用品的稅率是5%。