FLUORIDE VICTORY IN THE UK!

Dear Paul Connett and CTM,

Great news, I gave a presentation to Copeland Borough Council with my opponent Dr Peter Tiplady who is medical officer of health for North Cumbria. Then the full council went into debate. Copeland have been members of NWCAF since 1989 they voted 28 to 12 with one abstention to continue opposing fluoridation and to ask the water company and health authority to stop.

The other council in West Cumbria which is a fluoridated area is Allerdale which has always had a policy FOR fluoridation and it has taken a number of years to get them to hold a debate. However every three months they publish a council newspaper and send it to every household, so they consulted this way with the people, 83% of the people who responded wanted the council to oppose fluoridation, so they were literally forced to have a debate.

They set up a task group to study the evidence and adopted Dr Tiplady on it, we wrote letters of objection but they took no notice, I attended their final meeting as a member of the public as they had asked Dr Tiplady for references on reduction of IQ's in children. I knew he would not produce them so I calculated that I could possibly interrupt the meeting with the references. This I did but I had interrupted twice before because he could not answer the councillors questions, I did this politely.

The task group voted to recommend to the council that they reverse their policy on fluoridation on the freedom for the people they represent to choose what medication they wanted not to have it compulsory added to the drinking water supplies. The full council voted 30 to 12 with 5 abstaining to reverse their policy on fluoridation.

However the job is not finished, our task now after stopping fluoridation in Buttermere is to stop fluoridation in West Cumbria. NWCAF will put all our efforts into this.

Liz Vaughan
North West Councils Against Fluoridation

PHILLIP DAY COMMENT: Liz Vaughan and Jane Jones are two of Britain's most tireless anti-fluoridation campaigners. They both deserve awards, in my opinion. If you are interested in setting up opposition to water fluoridation in your local area in Britain, contact the National Pure Water Association at www.npwa.freeserve.co.uk and get some help on how to set things up effectively and professionally.

Our goal? A Fluoride-Free Britain by 2005.