Concerns over poor access to NHS dentists, and the easy availability of single-use vapes, were the subjects of separate motions agreed by the full meeting of Eastleigh Borough Council.
Councillors resolved to write to the secretary of state for health, Victoria Atkins, to call for the government to implement an emergency rescue plan for NHS dentistry. A further motion urges a ban on the sale of single-use vapes.
The council expressed concern over local provision and access to dental services and called on the government to implement an emergency rescue plan for NHS dentistry, including using unspent funding to boost the number of appointments. It also notes how a lack of dental care can particularly affect the health of children and calls for the removal of VAT on children’s toothbrushes and toothpaste.
Whilst not anti-vaping, which it sees as a useful tool in smoking cessation, the council says the government should be doing all it can to discourage children from vaping; it urges an immediate ban on the sale of single-use vapes and free samples and, with the rapid uptake of the activity by children, proposes implementing the same advertising restrictions and sanctions on their sale as tobacco products. Discarded single-use vapes are also difficult to recycle and pose a significant environmental risk; they can be a fire hazard when disposed of in general waste (as a recent blaze in a council bin lorry demonstrated) and can adversely affect wildlife.
Keith House, the leader of Eastleigh Borough Council, said, “Public health is one of the ouncil’s key priorities and I would like to thank councillor Liz Jarvis for putting forward these motions, which were agreed by council. They focus on issues that we know are of significant concern in our communities: the lack of access to NHS dental services can have a huge impact on the quality of life for residents and on the health of local children, and the rise in the sale of single-use vapes has a number of very adverse effects.”
The full wording of both motions, put forward by Liz Jarvis, are below:
Motion - Ban on sale of single-use vapes and free samples
To consider the following motion proposed by councillor Liz Jarvis, and seconded by councillor Richard Gomer:
Council notes that:
- a) at least 1.3m disposable vapes end up in landfill in the UK every week, posing a significant risk to the environment;
- b) disposable vapes create a fire hazard for waste and litter collection services, and hazardous litter in our countryside, with some entering our waterways, placing our precious wildlife at risk;
- c) according to the RSPCA single-use vapes pose significant and potentially devastating risks to animals both domesticated and wild;
- d) disposable vapes are designed as one unit with a lithium ion battery, which cannot be separated from its plastic, making them difficult to recycle; and that
- e) in May 2023, data from Action on Smoking and Health (ASH) showed there had been a 50 per cent rise in the proportion of children trying vaping in Great Britain in the last year, with disposable vapes the vape of choice for children currently vaping.
The council agrees that:
- f) Council is not anti-vaping, which has been shown to be less harmful than smoking and has a place as a tool to use in smoking cessation; but that
- g) The government should be doing all it can to discourage children from vaping, including age warnings on packets, an end to toy-like advertising targeted at children, and a ban on the sale of single-use vapes and free samples.
Council resolves to:
- h) Write to the secretary of state for health supporting an immediate ban on the sale of single-use vapes and free samples, and to implement mandatory age-of-sale signage on vaping products with sanctions for breaching these rules as per under tobacco display regulations; and to
- i) Investigate the potential to introduce proper collection points for disposable vapes.
Motion - Access to NHS dentists in Eastleigh
To consider the following motion proposed by councillor Liz Jarvis and seconded by councillor Bhavin Dedhia:
The council notes:
- a) Its gratitude to the dentists, doctors and staff across Eastleigh who continue to strive to provide the best possible dental care for patients despite the pressures of working in a dysfunctional target-driven system;
- b) Access to NHS dentist appointments is limited for children and adults across Hampshire, which is creating additional pressures in other parts of the health service, particularly urgent and emergency care and primary care;
- c) Eastleigh, similarly to the rest of the country, is facing an acute NHS dental crisis;
- d) There are particular concerns about the impact of a lack of dental care for children and the impact this can have on the rest of their lives, with tooth decay still the number one reason for hospital admissions among young children (aged five and over);
- e) According to the British Dental Association, the government spend on general dental practice in England has been cut by about a third in the last decade in real terms;
- f) In July 2023 the Health and Social Care Committee concluded its inquiry into NHS dentistry, describing the state of the service as unacceptable in the 21st Century, and set out recommendations to the government for real urgent reform; and that
- g) The government’s response to the inquiry has been overdue since September 14, 2023.
The council agrees that:
- h) The government should implement an emergency rescue plan for NHS dentistry, including spending any funding that has gone unspent in recent years to boost the number of appointments as well as the removal of VAT on children’s toothbrushes and toothpaste.
Council resolves to:
- i) Write to the secretary of state of health outlining concerns over local provision and access to services, outlining urgent reforms which need to take place, including boosting spending, reforming commissioning to tackle the twin crises of access and affordability, recognising overseas dentistry qualifications, implementing an urgent programme to recruit and retain more NHS dentists, and to undertake a wholesale reform of NHS dental contracts to make it more financially sustainable and better structured for dental practices to remain in the NHS system; and
- j) Seek the backing of Eastleigh’s members of parliament for these actions.