Internet helped create pressure to end tampon tax, says lead campaigner

Ms Coryton was made an MBE at Windsor Castle for her campaigning efforts (Ben Birchall/PA)

The lead campaigner who ended the UK tampon tax has said the internet helped bring more people together to create pressure for its removal.

Laura Coryton, founder of Stop Taxing Periods, was recognised for her services to charitable campaigning by being made an MBE at Windsor Castle.

Speaking to the PA news agency, the 30-year-old said she was proud of her role in the campaign and that it was “the highlight of my life so far”.

Laura Coryton, from London, Tampon Tax Campaigner, Author and Co-Founder, Sex Ed Matters, is made a Member of the Order of the British Empire by the Princess Royal — Laura Coryton is made a Member of the Order of the British Empire by the Princess Royal at Windsor Castle, Berkshire (Jonathan Brady/PA)

She said: “There’s so many campaigns before mine that were talking about tampon tax, trying to get it axed, but it wasn’t really until we could utilise the internet that we could create this.

“For example, I’m from Devon (and) one of my friends from home, his mum came and spoke to me and she said, ‘You know, I support your campaign, I think it’s really great because I used to campaign for this when I was your age.’

“And, you know, you can ignore one person in Devon, but you can’t ignore 320,000 people that sign this online petition.

“So yeah, it’s just such a privilege to be able to facilitate that. And then finally get it over the line.”

It was announced in January that consumers would no longer pay VAT on “essential and environmentally-friendly” period pants, following a separate two-year campaign.

Ms Coryton said campaigning on tampon tax had “definitely” helped to pave the way for further change, but insisted that more could still be done for women trying to access menstrual products.

Investitures at Windsor Castle — Ms Coryton said campaigning on tampon tax had helped pave the way for further change (Ben Birchall/PA)

She said: “I’d like to see period products be free in public spaces – Scotland’s done that.

“Even if you go to a really rural loch in Scotland you’ll find free period products in bathrooms, and yet in inner city London we don’t see them.

“Period products are just as essential as toilet paper.”

Ms Coryton added her social enterprise Sex Ed Matters had received a grant from the Government to develop a new artificial intelligence tool for schools and universities from September, which will help students and teachers understand the challenges around safeguarding consent.