Seán Fleming (Laois-Offaly, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I again thank the Senator. I will take on board, and take back to the Department of Finance, the issue of the luxury rate on incontinence pads. I know they can be a very heavy cost for many families. We all know, through our work as local public representatives, community nurses regularly provide substantial amounts of incontinence pads, through the HSE, to patients in their areas that require them. However, we all hear locally they can sometimes be rationed. Some people are provided with incontinence pads through the HSE.

Period products such as menstrual cups, pants and sponges, previously at the standard VAT rate, were reduced to 13.5% on 1 January 2021. The Senator rightly asked why they were not reduced to the 9% applied to the hospitality sector. People understand that the VAT reduction from 13.5% to 9% in the hospitality sector was a temporary response to support those facing serious economic difficulties due to Covid-19. It is only a temporary measure and the plan is that the rate will go back to 13.5%. It was strictly a Covid measure for those particular businesses.

It is important to note that the rate of VAT applied relates to the type of product rather than whether it is sustainable. That is a broad issue we will all have to raise at European level. This means that sustainable sanitary towels and more environmentally friendly tampons still have a zero rate applied to them. It is very important to say that. I reiterate that sustainable sanitary towels and more environmentally friendly tampons still have a zero rate applied to them.