Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health, what discussions his Department has had with the General Dental Council on its proposal to increase the annual retention fee by 64 per cent; and what his Department's response is to that proposal.

No formal discussions have taken place with the General Dental Council (GDC) on their proposal to increase the annual retention fee.

The GDC is an independent body and it is therefore for the GDC Council to determine the level of the annual fee it charges for registration. The proposed fee increase is subject to public consultation where the GDC’s case will be scrutinised. The Department does not usually contribute to such consultations but all professional regulators, including the GDC, are aware of the Department’s position on registration fees. In February 2011, the Government published Enabling Excellence, which states that we would not expect registration fees to increase beyond their current levels, unless there is a clear and robust business case that any increase is essential to ensure the exercise of statutory duties.

In my role as Parliamentary Under Secretary for Health I have regular contact with regulators on a whole range of issues and I have a meeting scheduled with the GDC in September.