One pressing issue that has been increasingly troubling me and many of you that have contacted me, is the lack of available NHS dental places locally. This issue has been a growing concern that I have been raising the alarm on for some time now.
Last year, several dentists disclosed to me that there wasn’t a single dentist taking on NHS patients in all of Lancashire, this had been confirmed by a BBC investigation last summer. To be blunt, dentistry in England has been a mess for quite some time and the Government has simply sat on their hands.
To try and get a straight and direct answer, I questioned the then-Chancellor Rishi Sunak in the House of Commons – noting that several years ago he complained about the lack of dentists in his own constituency, but now he holds the purse strings and can do something about it – but rather than make a commitment to new investment in NHS dentists, he instead sent a junior minister to give me a meaningless answer. Unsatisfied, I raised this again at Prime Minister’s Questions to disgraced former PM Boris Johnson, in the hope that he would not be able to duck the question. In answering, he simply repeated the lie that the NHS, including NHS dentistry, has “received record funding” – in fact, not a penny of the NHS catch up funding was allocated to dentistry.
Again, in January this year having secured another PMQ I raised this issue with Rishi Sunak now as Prime Minister. He said that there’s more NHS dentists now (not that anyone would know), and then bizarrely waffled on about his own use of private and NHS GPs to try and score some random political points that week.
I have raised this with the Government in every way I can, and yet it remains clear that there is no plan, and that Lancashire is continuing to be let down by this Government.
I know that over the past few years, the scarcity of NHS dental places has become a significant challenge not just here in Lancashire, but nationally too. The dwindling number of NHS dentists and the rising demand for their services have created a distressing situation, leaving patients struggling to find accessible and affordable dental care. I’m aware of people performing their own dental procedures at home because they couldn’t find a practice to take them on, and/or couldn’t afford to go private. I have also noticed that high street drug stores are pushing DIY dental kits. This situation is verging on barbaric!
After hitting brick walls with the government and two Tory Prime Ministers, I recently jumped at the opportunity to meet with the Chief Dental Officer for England Sara Hurley, where I expressed our collective frustrations and sought her perspective on potential solutions.
During our conversation, the Chief Dental Officer and I discussed the need for increased funding for NHS dentistry, as well as the importance of recruiting and retaining more dentists in our region. Ultimately, addressing the shortage of NHS dental places requires a multi-faceted approach involving reform of the current contractual frameworks and collaboration among policymakers, healthcare providers, and local communities.
Whilst challenges remain, I am committed to continuing the fight for improved, affordable dental provision in our area. Please do contact me if you are having trouble finding a dentist and I will do what I can to help you. By highlighting real stories with local stakeholders, and persistently seeking intervention at the national level, we can make a difference and secure the dental care that our community deserves.
If you’re struggling with this topic or want to get in touch to discuss any other issue, as ever please feel free to contact me at [email protected].