Swansea Students’ Union slashes prices
Swansea University Students’ Union President Lewys Arôn, has announced that MyCostcutter on Singleton campus is to slash the price of tampons by 15% in responce to his manifesto commitment to support the campaign.
Tampons are currently subjected to a 5% ‘luxury goods’ tax and are classified as a non-essential item. The Free the Period campaign sets out to persuade George Osborne, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, to reduce the UK’s “outdated, damaging” sanitary tax from five to zero per cent. The campaign began with Laura Coryton, a 21-year-old student at Goldsmiths University who launched a petition on change.org https://www.change.org/p/george-osborne-stop-taxing-periods-period. The campaign has since gained a huge following online with almost a quarter million people signed up to support it.
Announcing the change Lewys said:
“This is great news for students and another manifesto point sucessfuly achieved. With the Union taking strides to tackle this issue on campus I feel we should now begin to support the #FreeThePeriod campaign nationally and to lobby the government to remove the archaic tax. There's still lot's of work to do but I feel that this is a good place to start.
I’m really thankfull to our staff whom have worked hard to give students the best deal possible when the costs of a University education continue to rise”
Heather Wood the Union’s womens officer said;
“'In an impressive feat, Swansea University Students’ Union has proved that it can offer fairness to its students who self-define as women and trans men. It’s something not even the government can achieve. I am incredibly proud of Lewys, our president who has secured a 15% decrease on the price of tampons, which is triple what the government tax on tampons and sanitary products.”
The change will be implemented in store immediately and the Students’ Union will look to continue to support this campaign and equality on campus.
Lleihau Prisiau Undeb y Myfyrwyr Prifysgol
Mae Llywydd Undeb y Myfyrwyr Prifysgol Abertawe Lewys Aron, wedi cyhoeddi y bydd Mycostcutter ar gampws Singleton yn lleihau pris tampons o 15% mewn ymateb i ymrwymiad ei maniffesto i gefnogi ymgyrchon.
Ar hyn o bryd mae tamponau yn dioddef o 5% o dreth ‘nwyddau moethus’ ac yn cael eu dosbarthu fel eitemau sydd ddim yn hanfodol. Mae ymgyrch rhyddhau cyfnod cylchdro yn mynd ati i berswadio George Osborne, Canghellor y Trysorlys, i leihau'r dreth glanweithdra ‘hen ffasiwn, difrodi’ y DU o bump i ddim y cant. Dechreuodd yr ymgyrch gyda Laura Coryton, myfyriwr 21 mlwydd oed ym Mhrifysgol Goldsmiths a lansiodd deiseb ar https://www.change.org/p/george-osborne-stop-taxing-periods-period. Mae’r ymgyrch wedi ennill sylw enfawr ar lein gyda bron i chwarter miliwn o bobl wedi cofrestru i’w cefnogi.
Wrth gyhoeddi’r newid dywedodd Lewys:
“Mae hyn yn newyddion gwych i fyfyrwyr a fy mhwynt maniffesto arall wedi cael ei gyflawni yn llwyddiannus. Gyda’r undeb yn cymryd camau i fynd i’r adael ar fater hwn ar y campws, rwy’n teimlo y delem yn nawr dechrau cefnogi’r ymgyrch #rhyddhau cyfnod cylchdro yn genedlaethol ac i geisio cael y llywodraeth i gael gwared ar y dreth hynafol. Mae yna llawer o iaith dal i neud ond mae hyn yn lle dda i dechra. Rwy’n ddiolchgar iawn i’r staff sydd wedi gweithio’n galed i roi’r fargen orau i fyfyrwyr pan mae costau addysg yn y brifysgol yn parhau i gynyddu”.
Dywedodd Swyddog Merched yr Undeb Heather Wood:
“Mewn camp drawiadol, mae Undeb y Myfyrwyr Prifysgol Abertawe wedi profi y gallai gynnig tegwch i fyfyrwyr sy’n hunan ddiffinio fel menywod a dynion trawsrywiol. Mae’n rhywbeth ni all hyd yn oed y llywodraeth gyflawni. Rwy'n hynod o falch o Lewys, ein llywydd sydd wedi sicrhau gostyngiad o 15% ar bris thamponau, sydd yn deirgwaith hyn o dreth y llywodraeth ar thamponau a chynnyrch glanweithiol.”
Bydd y newid yn cael ei weithredu yn y siop ar unwaith a bydd Undeb y Myfyrwyr yn edrych i barhau o gefnogi’r ymgyrch hon a chydraddoldeb ar y campws.