Fingal County Council has adopted a motion to pursue a policy to ban the compulsory addition of fluoride into the public water supply.

The motion was tabled by Cllr Heidi Bedell (GP). It will now be included in the council’s Corporate Development Plan.

Cllr Bedell said it was a historic and highly significant shift in Fingal County Council policy.

“The Green Party has been campaigning on this controversial health issue for many years now to rid fluoride from the country’s public water supplies,” said Cllr Bedell. “Slowly but surely the municipal authorities across Ireland are deciding to back the Green Party’s call for a ban on fluoride.

Cllr Bedell highlighted a recent study carried out in Canada. It found no evidence of any alleged quality of life advantage from fluoridation.

“This effectively undermines its credibility as a public health initiative,” continued Cllr Bedell. “The Canadian study noted that where fluoridation has been discontinued, the rate of tooth decay did not increase to any significant degree.”

A Canadian professor commenting on the findings said that there is no need to put fluoride in water because it is now present in various other sources.

“He said children are getting too much fluoride in communities where it is added to the water,” remarked the Fingal councillor.

Cllr Bedell said that fluoridation has been rejected by almost all European countries except Ireland.

“Fingal County Council’s adoption of the Green Party motion is indeed a healthy step along the road to getting rid of fluoride from our water supplies,” concluded Cllr Bedell.

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