Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what recent estimate his Department has made of the number and proportion of NHS dentists that are not accepting new patients; and what steps he is taking in response to that matter.

No recent estimate has been made. Between April and June 2022, NHS England and NHS Improvement have asked practices to deliver at least 95% of contracted units of dental activity and 100% of units of orthodontic activity to safely improve access for patients.

An additional £50 million was made available for National Health Service dentistry was made available for the final quarter of 2021/22 to provide greater access to dental care and tackle the backlog. The available appointments were targeted at those most in need of urgent dental treatment, vulnerable groups and children. NHS England and NHS Improvement are working with the Department and the British Dental Association on the reform of the NHS dental contract, which aims to improve patient access to NHS care.