Dental Recruitment Incentive Scheme
2026-06-09
TAGS
Response quality
Questions & Answers
Q1
Partial Answer
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Context
Concern over local dentists transitioning to private practice and the inadequacy of current incentives. The British Dental Association reports that 96% of practices are not accepting new NHS patients.
My constituent John from Bredbury has been in touch because his local dentist is going private, which is unaffordable for many families in my constituency. The dental recruitment incentive scheme has recruited only two dentists in Greater Manchester and none in Hazel Grove despite a £20,000 golden hello over three years. What more can the Minister do to ensure that my constituents get the dentists they need, where they need them?
The fundamental issue with the current system is that it does not incentivise dentists to do NHS work. We have reduced the underspend on NHS dentistry from £392 million to £36 million since coming into office in July 2024, but there is still a long way to go and we need to reform the long-term contract to encourage more NHS provision.
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Assessment & feedback
Specific actions or commitments on how to improve recruitment incentive scheme were not detailed
Response accuracy
Q2
Partial Answer
▸
Context
Concern over local dentists transitioning to private practice and the inadequacy of current incentives. The British Dental Association reports that 96% of practices are not accepting new NHS patients.
My constituent John from Bredbury has been in touch because his local dentist is going private, which is unaffordable for many families in my constituency. The dental recruitment incentive scheme has recruited only two dentists in Greater Manchester and none in Hazel Grove despite a £20,000 golden hello over three years. What more can the Minister do to ensure that my constituents get the dentists they need, where they need them?
The fundamental problem is that the units of dental activity system does not work for NHS dentistry. We have reduced the underspend on NHS dentistry from £392 million to £36 million since coming into office in July 2024, but there is still a long way to go and we need to reform the long-term contract to incentivise dentists to do NHS work.
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Assessment & feedback
Specific actions or commitments on how to improve recruitment incentive scheme were not detailed
Response accuracy
Q3
Partial Answer
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Context
Residents of South East Cornwall face long travel times and limited provision for NHS dental services. This area is considered a dental desert.
Access to NHS dentistry remains challenging in rural communities such as South East Cornwall, with residents facing significant travel times and insufficient local provision. Will the Minister meet me to discuss what steps can be taken to improve access?
My hon. Friend is right that there are areas known as dental deserts, and we need to fix this issue by incentivising dentists to provide NHS work regardless of location. There are particularly acute pressures in constituencies like South East Cornwall, and I would be happy to meet her to discuss these further.
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Assessment & feedback
No concrete steps or commitments for immediate action were provided
Response accuracy