Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what criteria were used to determine the location of water fluoridation schemes.

Decisions on existing water fluoridation schemes in England were determined by the relevant National Health Service or local authorities responsible at the time they were introduced, in agreement with the water undertaker and focussed on reducing tooth decay. The Government’s proposal to expand water fluoridation in the North East, subject to a public consultation to begin early this year, is based on large inequalities in oral health, existing feasibility studies, and water company experience operating such schemes.