A Perth woman has expressed disappointment after unsuccessfully trying to donate clothing to the Japanese tsunami relief effort.
Tricia Bremner, who runs the Light Our Way charity shop on Scott Street, had hoped to send warm winter items to the survivors.
However, after contacting the British Red Cross, she was told it would only be taking monetary donations due to the logistics of posting packages from the UK.
Mrs Bremner, whose shop raises money for the specialist dogs section of Tayside Police, said, “As we change the stock over from winter to spring clothing we have a lot left over and I wanted this to go to those people in Japan because they have nothing.
“I phoned someone at the Red Cross and told them that I have quality clothing for them and asked if I could give it to them to send over.
“The person at the end of the line said they just wanted money and, if I wanted to, I could sell the clothes and say the cash was going towards the Red Cross.”
A spokesman for the British Red Cross in Scotland explained why they were unable to accept items.
“We set up our Japan Tsunami Appeal to enable people in the UK to support the work of the Japanese Red Cross by donating money,” he said. “Money can be instantly transferred and converted into whatever is most needed, anywhere in the world.
“Whenever possible we buy the items we need to respond to an emergency in the affected country or in the region. This benefits the local economy and allows us to take into account local tastes, traditions and culture.
“Local purchasing also helps us reduce transport costs and speed up delivery times. Very often the cost of transporting a ‘free’ donation from the UK is more than the total value of the donation itself. For this reason we only accept donated goods for resale in the UK, through our chain of shops.”To donate to the appeal go to www.redcross.org.uk/japantsunami