Give DHB final say, says Yule

District health boards are better placed to decide whether communities get fluoridated water than local councils, Hastings mayor Lawrence Yule says.

The Government is being urged to give DHBs the final say on putting fluoride in town water supplies.

An inquiry by the parliamentary health committee on child health, released on Monday, recommended the Government invest in a nationwide oral health campaign, and transfer responsibility of water fluoridation from local councils to the Ministry of Health.

DHBs would decide standards on the "optimal level of fluoridation" in local water supplies, and work together with local councils to put the standards in place.

At present, councils vote on whether to add fluoride to the water, and how much to add.

In Hastings, a fluoride referendum was held alongside council elections last month. Residents voted to retain water fluoridation.

Napier does not have fluoridated water, but Waipukurau has had it since 1979.

Mr Yule, who is also the president of Local Government New Zealand, said he was "really pleased" with the outcome of the Hastings referendum.

"It was a strong mandate to keep it in."

Commenting on the parliamentary committee recommendations, he said it would be a "huge shift" to give DHBs the power to fluoridate water supplies - though elected health board members would still be accountable to voters.

"I think it probably sits better there than it does with the [councils], we have no experience about the health risks so I would probably welcome that overall."

Communities nationwide remain bitterly divided on whether to add fluoride to town drinking water supplies.

Hamilton residents voted overwhelmingly to retain fluoride last month after a heated debate saw the council remove it in July.

Anti-fluoridation group Fluoride Action Network New Zealand has argued fluoride can be linked to adverse health effects such as arthritis, thyroid dysfunction, lowered IQ and hypersensitivity.

However the parliamentary health committee's report said scientific evidence was clear that adding fluoride to a town water supply in appropriate monitored doses led to a reduction of dental decay in children, particularly children living in low socioeconomic families.

It recommended health experts produce and monitor "strong scientific evidence" to back up their decisions on adding fluoride to water. However, Health Minister Tony Ryall said fluoridation of public water supplies was a decision for local communities. "The Government's role is to support local councils when they decide to use fluoride - not to make the decision for them, and we are not considering changing that." APNZ