MP welcomes 'vital and desperately needed' announcement of extra urgent dental appointments for North Northumberland

The Government and NHS is rolling out 700,000 extra urgent NHS dental appointments.

Research suggests that of nine dental practices in North Northumberland, just one is accepting new adult NHS patients, with the number of local dentists also doing NHS activity in North Northumberland at its lowest in five years.

David Smith, Labour MP for North Northumberland, welcoming the ‘vital and desperately needed’ news, said: “Everyone in north Northumberland knows the scale of the challenge facing NHS dentistry after years of failure under the Tories; since being elected I have been contacted by many constituents who are unable to see an NHS dentist.

“In recent years it has become near impossible to get an NHS dental appointment and it is scandalous that the number one reason that five to nine year olds are admitted to hospital is because of tooth decay.

“I am particularly pleased to see that the scale of the problem here is being recognised, with the highest number of new urgent care appointments for the North East and North Cumbria region of all regions in England.

“Of course our dental services cannot be rebuilt overnight, but I am delighted that this Labour Government is taking such an important step not only repairing NHS dentistry but making it fit for the future.

“Labour made a promise and is now delivering that promise through our Plan for Change.”

He has written to Wes Streeting, Secretary of State for Health and Social care, ahead of the Spending Review to emphasise the importance of continued funding for North Northumberland dentistry.

In the North East, over 20% of patients who tried to see an NHS dentist in the last two years were unable to do so, with access to NHS dentistry increasingly a lottery across the country over the last few years.

In the North East and North Cumbria ICB, 57,559 urgent care appointments are to be delivered.

Stephen Kinnock, Minister of State for Care said: “We promised we would end the misery faced by hundreds of thousands of people unable to get urgent dental care. Today we’re starting to deliver on that commitment.”