To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average pay is for a full-time dental nurse; and if she will make a statement on her plans to improve recruitment and retention in the dental profession.

To ask the Secretary of State for Health what the average pay is for a full-time dental nurse; and if she will make a statement on her plans to improve recruitment and retention in the dental profession.

The Minister was about to consider access. Will she clarify a point about the position after 1 April? Will two people who live next door to each other, one registered with an NHS dentist and the other not, have different rights of access to NHS dentistry after 1 April? Does...

The Minister was about to consider access. Will she clarify a point about the position after 1 April? Will two people who live next door to each other, one registered with an NHS dentist and the other not, have different rights of access to NHS dentistry after 1 April? Does...

NHS dentistry and primary health care. Third opposition day debate (part 1). Motion negatived on division (467 to 65). Amendment agreed on question.

NHS dentistry and primary health care. Third opposition day debate (part 1). Motion negatived on division (467 to 65). Amendment agreed on question.

If the hon. Gentleman will forgive me, I want to make some progress. There has been a dramatic fall in registrations, which is now at best levelling off. At oral questions recently, the Minister of State, Department of Health, the hon. Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton), said that"““there has...

If the hon. Gentleman will forgive me, I want to make some progress. There has been a dramatic fall in registrations, which is now at best levelling off. At oral questions recently, the Minister of State, Department of Health, the hon. Member for Doncaster, Central (Ms Winterton), said that"““there has...

My hon. Friend makes a good point, and I shall come in a moment to the issue of NHS Direct pointing people in the direction of dental services that are often not local.

My hon. Friend makes a good point, and I shall come in a moment to the issue of NHS Direct pointing people in the direction of dental services that are often not local.

We have become increasingly aware of the patchy nature of dental coverage. In some places there have been improvements, but many people still face just the kind of problem that my hon. Friend has outlined. Two in five children and more than half of all adults are not registered with...

We have become increasingly aware of the patchy nature of dental coverage. In some places there have been improvements, but many people still face just the kind of problem that my hon. Friend has outlined. Two in five children and more than half of all adults are not registered with...

The hon. Gentleman is right. I came across a startling statistic recently—it may or may not be true—which was that one in seven people in this country have no teeth of their own. That would predominantly involve older people, as the hon. Gentleman rightly says, and for those people, quality...

The hon. Gentleman is right. I came across a startling statistic recently—it may or may not be true—which was that one in seven people in this country have no teeth of their own. That would predominantly involve older people, as the hon. Gentleman rightly says, and for those people, quality...

Even the Government would think that that was a long way to go to get a dentist.

Even the Government would think that that was a long way to go to get a dentist.

No, I have already given way to the hon. Lady. The Government amendment states that all patients have got a better deal. How can the Minister put her name to it? How has the 70-year-old gentleman from Prestwich got a better deal if he has to queue around the block...

No, I have already given way to the hon. Lady. The Government amendment states that all patients have got a better deal. How can the Minister put her name to it? How has the 70-year-old gentleman from Prestwich got a better deal if he has to queue around the block...

My hon. Friend is right. Many dentists who went into dentistry to provide a quality service are finding that they cannot do so within the constraints of the existing NHS arrangements. What is the root problem? Clearly, the fact that there are not enough dentists. It is not a complex...

My hon. Friend is right. Many dentists who went into dentistry to provide a quality service are finding that they cannot do so within the constraints of the existing NHS arrangements. What is the root problem? Clearly, the fact that there are not enough dentists. It is not a complex...

The hon. Gentleman makes an interesting point. Dentists from this country say that dentists from other countries clearly have different practices and procedures. I think the phrase was, ““Brazilians don’t do root canal work.”” Different dentists with different levels of training and different practices are coming into the country. I...

The hon. Gentleman makes an interesting point. Dentists from this country say that dentists from other countries clearly have different practices and procedures. I think the phrase was, ““Brazilians don’t do root canal work.”” Different dentists with different levels of training and different practices are coming into the country. I...

Many dentists share the hon. Gentleman’s and my commitment to the NHS, and are moving out of it with great reluctance. I have come across many who have hung in there while many more have gone private, because they believe in the principle, but the Government have made it impossible...

Many dentists share the hon. Gentleman’s and my commitment to the NHS, and are moving out of it with great reluctance. I have come across many who have hung in there while many more have gone private, because they believe in the principle, but the Government have made it impossible...

No, and as the hon. Gentleman will see if he reads the record, that is not what I said. One of the key principles is a foundation entitlement to NHS dentistry services, but as I made clear to his hon. Friend the Member for Mole Valley (Sir Paul Beresford), boundary...

No, and as the hon. Gentleman will see if he reads the record, that is not what I said. One of the key principles is a foundation entitlement to NHS dentistry services, but as I made clear to his hon. Friend the Member for Mole Valley (Sir Paul Beresford), boundary...

My judgment is that the concept of the national health service that we apply elsewhere should also be the starting point for NHS dentistry. In other words, we need to get to the idea that people have a basic entitlement to it. For too many people, that entitlement exists in...

My judgment is that the concept of the national health service that we apply elsewhere should also be the starting point for NHS dentistry. In other words, we need to get to the idea that people have a basic entitlement to it. For too many people, that entitlement exists in...

I am about to conclude my remarks. One of those dental practices would only take children under the age of three. We have therefore reached an extraordinary stage. What strikes me most is that dentists are telling us that they must turn away people who come to register, and who...

I am about to conclude my remarks. One of those dental practices would only take children under the age of three. We have therefore reached an extraordinary stage. What strikes me most is that dentists are telling us that they must turn away people who come to register, and who...

I shall conclude my remarks in a moment. One of the most worrying findings of the research undertaken by Mark Hunter and the team was that most of the dental practices to whom they spoke were taking on children only if their parents were existing patients. Given the drop in...

I shall conclude my remarks in a moment. One of the most worrying findings of the research undertaken by Mark Hunter and the team was that most of the dental practices to whom they spoke were taking on children only if their parents were existing patients. Given the drop in...

The hon. Gentleman will be aware that primary care trusts are taking on the commissioning role for dentistry, so it seems implausible that they are not having such dialogue. When we talk to dentists, however, we get feedback that they feel beleaguered and cannot cope. It is not a lack...

The hon. Gentleman will be aware that primary care trusts are taking on the commissioning role for dentistry, so it seems implausible that they are not having such dialogue. When we talk to dentists, however, we get feedback that they feel beleaguered and cannot cope. It is not a lack...

No, I want to keep moving on. One of the unspoken issues today has been charging for dental treatment. Charging is a central feature of NHS dentistry, unlike in most areas of the NHS, in that people are already paying very large sums of money for their treatment. The Government...

No, I want to keep moving on. One of the unspoken issues today has been charging for dental treatment. Charging is a central feature of NHS dentistry, unlike in most areas of the NHS, in that people are already paying very large sums of money for their treatment. The Government...

No, I have said that I want to make some progress. One of the problems resulting from the lack of registration is a lack of preventive work being carried out. Surely if we believe in anything, we believe that the best thing of all is to prevent people from getting...

No, I have said that I want to make some progress. One of the problems resulting from the lack of registration is a lack of preventive work being carried out. Surely if we believe in anything, we believe that the best thing of all is to prevent people from getting...

No, I have said that I want to make some progress. The National Audit Office reports that the incidence of tooth decay among five-year-olds is now gradually starting to get worse. Long-term general improvements in public health are now starting to get worse at the margins, which is a symptom...

No, I have said that I want to make some progress. The National Audit Office reports that the incidence of tooth decay among five-year-olds is now gradually starting to get worse. Long-term general improvements in public health are now starting to get worse at the margins, which is a symptom...