NHS Dentistry: Rural Areas

Debate between David Smith and Sarah Gibson

Tuesday 5th November 2024 Commons Chamber

[Sarah Gibson]

I agree with my hon. Friend; that speaks to the fact that we are being left with a dental desert, with no sign of relief.

[David Smith (North Northumberland) (Lab)]

I commend the hon. Lady for securing this important debate. She mentioned that dental deserts can be a problem up and down the country. That is certainly the case in my constituency of North Northumberland. I welcome the Government’s dental rescue plan and the commitment to an additional 700,000 appointments per year. However, my situation is like hers: constituents in hundreds of square kilometres of my constituency tell me that they simply cannot access NHS dentistry. It is a real shame that no Conservative Members are here to hear this. Does the hon. Lady agree that rural residents should expect the same provision of NHS dentistry as those in urban areas?

[Sarah Gibson]

I do agree with the hon. Member. The real issue for rural areas is, again, access to public transport. Dental provision might be relatively close in theory, but public transport does not allow people to get to the dentist. The issue of rurality is important and needs to be addressed.

Analysis conducted by the Rural Services Network shows that someone living in a rural area is less likely to be able to access an NHS dentist than those living in an urban area, with 10% fewer dental practices taking on new adult NHS patients in rural areas. The analysis also shows that in rural areas, there are 16% fewer dental practices with an NHS contract per 100,000 people. That again points to the fact that rural areas are definitely in a worse situation than urban ones.