A Woman Has Confronted Joe Hockey About The Tampon Tax
Also, there’s a giant tampon on its way to the treasurer.
posted on May. 22, 2015, at 6:12 a.m.
Federal treasurer Joe Hockey was asked about the tax on tampons and sanitary pads by a Brisbane woman at a Politics In The Pub event on Thursday night, and told her “there is nothing I can do for you.”
27-year-old zoology student Katie Ryan had recently signed a petition calling for the government to remove the tax on tampons. She asked him, “condoms, lubricants and incontinence pads are exempt from the GST. Why aren’t tampons and sanitary pads?”She told BuzzFeed News that he responded with “kind of a red-faced scoff and snort of derisive laughter”.Hockey then said the tax was a legacy from the previous [Liberal] government. Ryan says he told her “You need to talk to [Qld treasurer] Curtis Pitt as all states need to agree on changes to the GST, so there is nothing I can do for you. The federal government has no plans to make any changes to items receiving GST”.BuzzFeed News has reached out to treasurer Joe Hockey for comment.
University student Subeta Vimalarajah is not letting up in her campaign to get the government to remove the 10% GST on tampons. First it was an online petition, and now she’s got a giant tampon that she wants to send to the federal treasurer Joe Hockey.
“Dreams do come true. Most 21 year olds might dream of a new car, tickets to Europe or unlimited drinks vouchers, but I always dreamed of a giant tampon that could raise awareness about unfairness,” she writes on the “stop taxing my period” event page.
The tampon is two metres tall and made out of cotton so people can write their message to the treasurer on it in permanent marker, Vimalarajah told BuzzFeed News.
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“It’s a campaign piece, so people can reflect about their thoughts on the issue,” she said.
The aim is to walk it through campus and take some photos, and then hand it on to other universities, starting with University of Technology Sydney and the University of New South Wales.
“We want people to take photos and upload them with the hashtag #bettertaxreview and #stoptaxingmyperiod,” she said.
“Lift the tax on tampons, mate” one supporter wrote on the giant tampon.
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“Vaginas aren’t here to make you money Mr Hockey,” says one of the messages from a “proud vagina possessor”.
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One of the campaigns male supporters writes on the giant tampon “Joe, periods aren’t optional. Don’t be a dick.”
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Tina’s message was ALL IN CAPS and straight to the point, but softened at the end with a love heart.
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The campaign is encouraging people to send submissions to the federal government’s Better Tax Review, which is accepting tax reform suggestions from the public until June 1.
Those who support the campaign argue that it is unfair for the government to put a tax on women’s sanitary products when other health products such as condoms are exempt from the GST.
The petition says “People who get periods don’t buy pads and tampons for pleasure, so why are we forced to fork out an extra 10% every 2, 3, 4 weeks? Taxing Australians for getting their period isn’t just sexist, it’s fundamentally unfair!”
Just as women’s menstrual cycles are said to sync when they live together, so too have the global campaigns to stop the tampon tax.
Vimalarajah says she wants to give the tampon to Joe Hockey personally.
“Although it will be sad to see it go, after that the tampon will be gifted to our dear Mr Hockey,” she writes.
“Hopefully a giant sanitary product in the corner of his office will provoke enough guilt to get sanitary products exempt!”
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