Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is talking to (a) enable and (b) promote to the public the potential benefits of water supply fluoridation.

The Government has stated its intention to expand water fluoridation across the North-East of England, subject to consultation, to reach an additional 1.6 million people, and plans to hold the public consultation on the proposed expansion in the North-East in 2023. Following the consultation, we will provide an update on the proposals for water fluoridation.

Water fluoridation is a safe public health intervention to improve the oral health of both adults and children and helps to tackle inequalities. The Health and Care Act will make it simpler to expand water fluoridation schemes across England.

The United Kingdom Chief Medical Officers in their joint statement in September 2021 concluded that on balance, there is strong scientific evidence that water fluoridation is an effective public health intervention for reducing the prevalence of tooth decay and improving dental health equality across the UK. Their independent report is available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/water-fluoridation-statement-from-the-uk-chief-medical-officers/statement-on-water-fluoridation-from-the-uk-chief-medical-officers