§ Mr. LlwydTo ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland what percentage of five-year-old children in Northern Ireland had dental decay in(a) 1990, (b) 1992 and (c) 1995; and if he will make a statement. [27438]
§ Mr. MossEvery two years the British Association for the Study of Community Dentistry conducts a survey of dental caries prevalence in children aged five throughout the United Kingdom. However, the survey did not extend 23W to Northern Ireland until 1994 and figures are not therefore available for 1989–90 or 1991–92. Figures for 1995–96 will not be available until March 1997. The latest available information, for 1993–94, shows that the mean percentage of five-year-old children in Northern Ireland for whom there is evidence of caries experience is 59 per cent.