Whangārei District Council is risking imprisonment for its politicians as it continues to defy a government fluoridation order, lawyers have warned.
At an urgent short-notice extraordinary meeting, the council today moved to continue its fight against fluoride.
The often testy two-hour plus meeting was called after a very sternly-worded letter from Director General of Health Dr Diana Sarfati.
In the letter, Sarfati threatened to step in with a High Court legal order enabling her to override Whangārei District Council (WDC)’s November decision not to add fluoride to the district’s drinking water.
Whangārei District Council must fluoridate its drinking water for 80,000 residents by March 28 or risk being charged with breaking the law.
Lawyers advising the council have warned politicians were at risk of imprisonment as a result of the council not fluoridating by then.
Other consequences included the government sacking the council and appointing commissioners or an observer.
These are alongside the prospect of councillors being individually liable for up to $200,000 in fines for defying the fluoridation directive, plus $10,000 a day for every day after that.
Whangārei Mayor Vince Cocurullo said the council was not yet breaking any law as there was still more than a month before the directive came into force.
But Cocurullo said he would go to prison for democracy, if the consequences of not meeting the March 28 decision reached that point.
He said the community needed to be able to have its say on whether fluoridation should happen and this was not the case at present.
Today’s council vote comes as ratepayers face the prospect of $5 million in potential extra WDC costs after councillors voted against fluoridating.
Whangārei District is the only council in New Zealand refusing to fluoridate among 14 nationwide ordered to do so by outgoing Director General of Health Sir Ashley Bloomfield in 2022.
Whangārei District councillor Gavin Benney led today’s council’s recommitment to the decision not to fluoridate, made via a 7:7 split vote where Cocurullo again used his casting vote.
Deputy Mayor Phil Halse and councillors Benney, Jayne Golightly, Marie Olsen, Simon Reid and Phoenix Ruka also voted in favour of this.
Meanwhile, councillors Nick Connop, Ken Couper, Deb Harding, Patrick Holmes, Scott McKenzie, Carol Peters and Paul Yovich were against.
Taking the refusal to the High Court
The council decided today to launch a High Court challenge against Sarfati’s fluoridation directive.
It will seek a declaration proceeding, which is a hearing where the court is presented with evidence on the safety or otherwise of fluoride from scientific experts and makes a judgement.
Cocurullo said the High Court should rule on the safety and science behind the government’s fluoridation push. There was science, including from New Zealand’s government science advisors, supporting both sides of the polarised argument.
It was up to the High Court to rule on what should be used as a basis for directing WDC to fluoridate.
The council will also seek “urgent interim relief” so it can delay its hands-on preparations for full fluoridation by the March deadline.
At today’s council meeting, Mayor Cocurullo ejected councillor Ken Couper — who voted against continuing with the anti-fluoridation stance — for 10 minutes for failing to stop his line of questioning during debate. Security was called and the meeting adjourned as Couper refused to depart.
The new legal moves decided on by the council superceded its mid-December decision to apply for an injunction, after lawyers indicated this was unlikely to succeed.
They will cost the Whangārei District Council at least $200,000 of unbudgeted funds with increased rates, or cutting planned council work.
Sarfati has requested a letter confirming today’s meeting decision before the end of the week.
She has signalled Whangārei District faces a High Court legal order known as a writ of mandamus if it continues to defy her fluoridation directive.
Cocurullo said the council’s resistance was for two reasons. The first was questioning the safety of fluoride.
The second was about democracy, where one person could order a council to fluoridate, without asking the public for its thoughts.
Whangārei District councillor Deb Harding today pushed for greater community say in the decision, via councillors supporting New Zealand First’s ‘Fluoridation (Referendum) Legislation Bill’ which seeks to repeal the Health (Fluoridation of Drinking Water) Amendment Act 2021 that grants centralised authority to the Direct General of Health and mandates the fluoridation of local water supplies.
The Bill would also amend the Local Government Act 2002 and Health Act 1956 mandating local authorities to hold a binding referendum on water fluoridation.
New Zealand First Leader Winston Peters said the Bill reinstated communities’ fundamental right to determine through democracy whether or not their water supply was fluoridated.
“Important public health measures such as this should be decided with transparency, debate, and local voices, not by overreaching Wellington-based bureaucrats,” Peters said.
