Fluoride to be added to all Britain's tap water to tackle tooth decay

Alan Johnson will tell MPs that fluoridation is an "effective and relatively easy way" to protect children's teeth.

But critics accuse the Health Secretary of nanny state interference and of jeopardising the nation's health.

The British Dental Association says overwhelming evidence shows adding fluoride to water helps fight against tooth decay, especially among poorer children.

Youngsters in Birmingham, where fluoride has been added for more than 40 years, have half the rates of tooth decay seen in their counterparts in fluoride-free Manchester.

A study by York University in 2000 found that fluoridation improved dental health by as much as 15 per cent.

Mr Johnson said: "I want the Health Service to do much more to prevent rather than just treat disease.

"Fluoridation is an effective and relatively easy way to help address health inequalities, giving children from poorer backgrounds a dental health boost that can last a lifetime.

"We have a duty to help the areas with the worst record on tooth decay to discuss this issue and take the necessary steps to improve their dental health."

A spokesman for the British Dental Association said children as young as five were having teeth removed under general anaesthetic because of decay.

"Water fluoridation is a positive step in narrowing the health inequalities that currently exist," he added.

Although fluoride is found in tap water there is too little of it to affect dental health.

The compound is added by water companies in the North-East and the West Midlands only, supplying 10 per cent of homes in England.

Mr Johnson is likely to make grants available for firms in other areas to consult customers about fluoridation.

In 2003, ministers passed legislation to make it easier for water companies to fluoridise their water - but few have done so, fearing legal action from anti-fluoride campaigners.

Yesterday the National Pure Water Association said the fluoridation of tap water was an unwarranted interference into consumer rights.

They claimed studies had linked the practice to brittle bone disease in the elderly and to bone cancer in young boys.

And they said it could cause fluorosis, where teeth become stained and pitted.

A spokesman said: "By presenting fluoridation as a means of preventing tooth decay, Health Secretary Alan Johnson confirms the practice is medication.

"Fluoridation is carried out by water companies in violation of their customers' human right to refuse consent to any medical intervention."

The fluoridation of water is one of a number of public health measures being pushed by the Government.

Last May, the Food Standards Agency announced that folic acid would be added to flour to prevent birth defects.