The government is to set aside £42m (€56m; $82m) for health authorities in England that choose to add fluoride to drinking water, the health secretary, Alan Johnson, told parliament last week.

It is planning to encourage health authorities to consult locally on the matter. Health authorities have been able to decide whether water supplies have fluoride added since the passage of the Water (Fluoridation) Act 1985. They have been actively encouraged to do so since MPs amended the act in a free vote in 2003. The law demands, however, that authorities first hold consultations with all interested local parties.

Mr Johnson said last week that the government believed that …