NHS Dentistry Backlog

Answer from Maria Caulfield

The dental activity threshold has recently been raised to 95% of usual activity. That is another quarter-on-quarter increase to get us towards 100% of pre-pandemic activity. I fully recognise, though, that access to NHS dentistry before the pandemic was patchy and that the crux of the problem is the current NHS dental contract, so work is under way to reform that contract. As negotiations have started, I am limited in what further I can say, but I will update the House as soon as possible.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

My hon. Friend is quite right in his question and is campaigning hard to increase dental activity in his constituency. One of the key pieces of work is being done through Health Education England, which set out a range of recommendations in its “Advancing Dental Care” review. That will do a number of things, such as increase the skill mix and scope of practitioners across dental teams, and we may well require legislation to bring some of that work forward. Health Education England is also introducing more flexible routes into dental training and doing some workforce modelling to identify the parts of the country with the biggest gaps in provision, so that we can establish centres of dental development in those areas. I will look at Ipswich in particular.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

I am sorry to hear about the hon. Lady's constituent's experience. There is not actually a list system for dentists as there is for GPs, so patients can see any dentist when they have a dental issue. With that said, we have asked dental practices to update their availability for NHS patients on the website. This morning, I looked at the website to see what availability there was throughout the country and saw that many dentists still have not updated their availability, so I will ask officials—particularly in her constituency—to update the lists so that patients can access NHS dentistry more easily.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

The Father of the House is quite right that the crux of the problem is that there is a shortage throughout the country not of dentists but of dentists taking on NHS work. The contract is the nub of the problem, which is why work is under way to reform it. We will shortly announce some short-term changes and some longer-term reforms, which will hopefully help my hon. Friend's constituents.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

The hon. Gentleman is correct that the units of dental activity payments are a perverse disincentive. Sometimes, when someone needs more extensive work, their dentist is paid the same as they would be for, say, one or two simple fillings. That is the nub of the problem and we are currently in negotiations on the matter.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

My right hon. Friend is right. Health Education England is addressing the overall system of where dentists are training and where the gaps in provision are filled in its “Advancing Dental Care” review. It is also working with commissioners at a local level to develop more opportunities in those places that we term dental deserts, where there is currently a lack of provision.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

I am sorry to the hear that tone from the hon. Lady. We are working under Labour's 2006 dental contract, and she may have missed that dentists were unable to offer any routine care during the pandemic over the last two years, which we have slowly worked up to 95% of usual activity. She may want to play politics with this issue, but perhaps she should speak to her Labour colleagues who run the NHS in Wales, where 6% of dental posts were lost last year. She should get her own side in order before lecturing this side of the House.

Answer from Maria Caulfield

We have had many cross-party meetings with colleagues about dentistry, with many raising constituency issues that we have followed up. He could speak to his local commissioners because there can sometimes be local problems with the commissioning of dental services. Now that we are moving towards 95% of usual activity—a significant change compared with last year—I hope that his constituents will be able to access services more easily.