A long-time anti-fluoride campaigner from Warrnambool has called Health Minister John Hill’s refusal to face Mount Gambier residents at a public fluoride meeting tomorrow evening an “utter disgrace” and demanded the minister be “sacked”.

Peter Hulin, a Warrnambool councillor and spokesperson for the Warrnambool Fluoride Action Group, said politicians had lost sight of the fact that they have been put in their positions to represent the wishes of the people.

“Politicians everywhere in Australia decline invitations to prove that fluoride is good for dental health,” he said.

“It’s an utter disgrace and Minister Hill should be sacked?—?it’s the worst case of Big Brother. To think, people have died for our democracy.”

Mr Hulin will be one of the speakers at the public meeting, organised by MLC Ann Bressington, at St Martin’s Lutheran College at 7pm tomorrow.

Ms Bressington has invited Mr Hill and SA Health’s water quality principal Dr David Cunliffe to attend the meeting, but they declined the invitation.

Mr Hulin said he was not surprised they declined.

He said when a public meeting was held in Warrnambool in 2007 ahead of fluoridation of the city’s water supply, 800 residents attended, but not one of the 34 people invited to give a pro-fluoride view was prepared to face the crowd.

Those invited included the Victorian premier and health minister, heads of the Department of Human Services, members of the dental profession and the Warrnambool City Council.

Mr Hulin said they did not attend because “their arguments do not stack-up”.

“Governments make it look as if they are doing something good about dental health by adding fluoride to water supplies, but there is not one review study in Australia that shows it is safe,” he said.

Mr Hulin will be joined on stage by Ms Bressington, Dr Natalie Ryan, also from Warrnambool, Dennis Stevenson from Queensland and a former Australian Dental Association member.

Mr Stevenson, a former parliamentary member of the ACT Legislative Assembly, was a member of the ACT Government Fluoridation Inquiry in 1989?–?91 and compiled a 177-page dissenting report as a major part of the inquiry’s final report.

He has self-published “If You Don’t Look After Your Body, Where Will You Live?” and is working on four other books covering democracy, success, fluoridation and life.