Your Weekly Wrap Up | 9 - 15 June 💦
From abortion rights to digital privacy — the headlines reshaping how we love, parent, and protest.
Self-care note: This newsletter discusses themes including homophobia, transphobia, abortion, fertility struggles, reproductive health, and gender-based discrimination. If you find this distressing or triggering, remember to take it at your own pace. You may prefer to read small sections, wait until you feel ready to read it all, or choose not to read it at all.
Hello ✨
From pop provocations to paternity pay, this week, we’re talking about what’s shaping sex, power, and identity in the headlines.
In Scotland, Sabrina Carpenter’s new album cover is sparking conversations about kink, consent, and media imagery. Meanwhile, MPs in Westminster prepare to vote on abortion decriminalisation, researchers warn about menstrual data being sold off by period tracking apps, and a new UN report highlights the real reasons people are having fewer children — and it’s not just “lack of ambition.”
Plus: a big shift in cervical screening invites, an NHS call for safer digital health tools, dating apps as queer lifelines, and Italy funding non-medical egg freezing. There’s a lot to feel, think, and talk about, so take your time with it.
Let’s get into it.
From Glasgow to global headlines: Sabrina Carpenter album art divides opinion 🎨
Sabrina Carpenter’s album cover for Man’s Best Friend — showing the pop star on all fours with a man pulling her hair — has sparked mixed reactions, from Glasgow to the global stage.
Some, including Glasgow Women’s Aid, have raised concerns that the imagery promotes violence and control, calling it a step backwards for the representation of women in media.
Others see it differently, describing the image as kink-inspired, satirical, or a deliberate artistic statement. Many fans argue that criticism risks veering into slut-shaming, and that women should be free to explore and express sexuality, including kink, without being judged.
MPs to vote on decriminalising abortion in England and Wales 🗳️
A free vote is expected next week on proposals that could decriminalise abortion in England and Wales.
Currently, abortion is legal under the 1967 Abortion Act, but it’s still technically a criminal offence under the Offences Against the Person Act of 1861, a Victorian-era law. This means people can be investigated or even prosecuted for ending their pregnancies outside strict medical conditions.
Two competing amendments are on the table. One, from Labour MP Tonia Antoniazzi, would decriminalise abortion at any stage when carried out by the pregnant person themselves. It’s backed by over 130 MPs, plus major health bodies like the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists and BPAS.
Another proposal by Labour MP Stella Creasy would establish access to abortion as a legal right and extend decriminalisation up to 24 weeks, though some campaigners worry it's being pushed through without enough scrutiny.
Advocates say the change is long overdue, especially after recent high-profile prosecutions. But opponents, including anti-abortion groups, warn the amendments pose “the greatest threat to unborn children” since the Abortion Act.
Source: BBC News
Cervical screening invites to change in England 💌
From 1 July, people aged 25–49 in England will start receiving cervical screening invites every five years instead of every three, as long as their last HPV test came back negative.
NHS England says the change reflects updated research showing that those who test negative for HPV (the virus that causes almost all cervical cancers) are at very low risk.
Scotland and Wales already use the five-year system, and England’s switch is part of a more personalised, evidence-based approach. It’s also backed by the success of the HPV vaccine, which has reduced cervical cancer rates by around a quarter since the early 1990s.
Charities welcomed the move, saying it spares people unnecessary appointments. But Cancer Research UK reminded people: if you notice symptoms like unusual bleeding or discharge, don’t wait for an invite — get checked.
Source: BBC News
MPs slam UK paternity leave as ‘outdated and unfair’ 🍼
The UK’s paternity leave system is “completely out of step” with modern parenting, according to a new report from the Women and Equalities Committee.
Fathers and other non-birthing parents currently get just two weeks of statutory leave, paid at a flat rate that’s well below the cost of living. Chair Sarah Owen says the system is “entrenching outdated gender stereotypes” and urgently needs reform.
The committee is calling for:
Paternity pay to match maternity pay in the first six weeks (90% of earnings)
Paid leave from day one of employment
Better support for self-employed parents, including a new paternity allowance
A simplified system that removes barriers like job tenure or earnings thresholds
The UK now ranks among the lowest for paternity pay in high-income countries, and the report warns that unless serious change happens, working parents will continue to be let down by a “tinkering around the edges” approach.
Source: Sky News
Call for public period tracker apps to protect users’ data 🔐
Experts are urging UK public health bodies to create non-profit, transparent alternatives to popular period tracker apps, warning that women’s intimate data is being harvested by private companies for profit.
A new University of Cambridge report says commercial apps are a “goldmine” for profiling, collecting sensitive info like medication, sexual preferences, and contraception use. In a largely unregulated market, this data can be sold and used to shape advertising, influence employment opportunities, or even limit access to abortion.
Researchers say the value of this data is massively underestimated by users. Pregnancy-related data, for instance, is over 200 times more valuable to advertisers than basic info like age or location.
The authors call for apps built within the NHS, like the US-based model from Planned Parenthood, that would give users control over how their menstrual data is used, or whether it's collected at all.
“Women deserve better than to have their menstrual tracking data treated as consumer data,” said Prof Gina Neff from the Minderoo Centre.
Source: The Guardian
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People are unable to have the number of children they want, UN warns 🌍
While governments and media tend to blame women and young people for the current fertility decline, the real reason for this must be found in the current political and financial crisis, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said.
A new survey published by the UNFPA and conducted across 14 countries found that, although two children were the most commonly desired family size, many respondents said they had to reconsider their plans.
Eighteen per cent said they wouldn’t be able to have as many children as they wanted. The most common barrier was economic: 39 per cent of those who have children or want to have them said financial limitations affected their ideal family size, and 21 per cent cited unemployment or job insecurity as the main obstacle. In addition, 19 per cent of respondents said that wars, the climate crisis, and the uncertain future had led or would lead to them having fewer children than desired.
As the UNFPA noted, the main goal should be providing people with the information and opportunities to decide “freely and responsibly” whether to become parents, when to have children, and how many to have.
Source: The Guardian
LGBTQIA+ people feel safer coming out on dating apps 🌈
A new survey conducted by Tinder revealed that 53 per cent of LGBTQIA+ people came out on a dating app before telling their friends or family. This trend is even more common among Gen Z, where the number rises to 59 per cent.
Several reasons were cited for this, including the lower pressure and the ability to explore their identity on their terms that online spaces can offer. Many respondents also highlighted the opportunity to create new friendships, meet people who could understand their experiences, and form connections beyond dating. Apps were also described as spaces where it is possible to better understand one’s own identity and the kind of people one would like to date.
Safety is another key factor. According to the survey, 65 per cent of respondents said they felt safer coming out on dating apps than in real life, and 74 per cent consider these platforms to be comfortable spaces to express their gender and sexual identity.
The survey included 4,000 LGBTQIA+ respondents across the UK, US, Australia, and Canada.
Source: DIVA Magazine
Italy’s Puglia region to fund egg freezing for non-medical reasons 🧊
In a groundbreaking move, Italy’s Puglia region has become the first in the country to offer financial support for “social egg freezing” — providing up to €3,000 to help women aged 27–37 preserve their fertility for future use.
The contribution, worth up to €3,000 (approximately £2,550), is available to women aged 27 to 37 who have lived in Puglia for at least 12 months and have a household income below €30,000 (around £25,500). The measure is intended to help offset the high costs of egg freezing at officially recognised public and private medical centres, giving women greater flexibility in deciding when to become mothers.
Egg freezing allows individuals to store their eggs and delay parenthood. As with any medical procedure, it carries some risks and side effects, including infection, bleeding, and increased oestrogen levels, which may pose a risk for those with oestrogen-sensitive cancers.
Source: Fanpage.it
That’s all for this week’s wrap-up, but there’s plenty happening beyond the headlines. From workshops to book clubs, here’s what’s coming up across Scotland.
Spicy (and cuddly) events happening soon🌶️
Second Skin : Inside the Worlds of Fetish, Kink and Deviant Desire (Book launch). Edinburgh, 17 June.
Queer Sketch Club. Paisley, 19 June.
The Uncensored Lounge. Glasgow, 20 June.
Sex Positive Reading Group (18+). 24 June, Glasgow.
Imagine a gender equal world - help write women onto Wikipedia! Edinburgh, 27 June.
Telling the story: Women’s activism in our collections. Edinburgh, 31 July.
Are you hosting or have you spotted an event about sex, relationships, feminism, and other related topics that we have missed (especially outside of the Central Belt)? Send it over at events@pillowtalk.scot!
The purpose of Pillow Talk Scotland is to provide information. You must not rely on the information on this newsletter as an alternative to medical advice from your doctor or other healthcare professional. You must always consult your doctor or healthcare professional if you have any concerns about your medical condition, diagnosis or treatment. Pillow Talk Scotland is not responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any damages resulting from the use of information contained within this site. If you have a complaint or wish to report any inaccuracies, you can email us at contact@pillowtalk.scot.
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