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Wales: Calling out the spin

For too long the Welsh Government have offered spin, half-truths or doublespeak on dentistry. So, we are calling it out.

In an open letter to Jeremy Miles MS Cabinet Secretary Health and Social Care, we are clear that NHS dentistry in Wales is at a crossroads, and this profession and the patients we treat require honesty.

Mr Miles sent his own open letter to the profession last month informing dentists he was imposing the 2024-25 uplift to the GDS contract with several conditions attached.

He claimed Welsh General Dental Practice Committee refused to continue to negotiate.

This is a spectacular act of bad faith, and our letter is to put the record straight.

So we have reached out to senior Members of Senedd explaining that dental practices have not yet received the uplift that would be backdated to April 2024, seriously undermining the sustainability of this service. This uplift means another real-terms pay cut for dentists and insufficient funds to cover running costs, and will not begin to meet the hike in employers’ National Insurance contributions coming in April.

Minsters claim investment and patient numbers are breaking records. The reality is that investment in dentistry has stalled, and numbers of patients seen in a year remain depressed by 30% compared to 2019 figures.

It is time our patients were given the dental service they deserve.  Not raise false hopes by announcing the Dental Access Portal to the public as if it could magically create extra appointments from thin air.

We will continue to fight for better conditions for practices committed to delivering NHS services.

Equally we are here to support members who have been left with little choice but to increase or fully convert to private practice.