Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to improve access to NHS dentistry in Shipley constituency.

The Government’s ambition is to make sure that everyone who needs dental treatment can access a dentist, including in the Shipley constituency. We will tackle the immediate dentistry crisis with a rescue plan to provide 700,000 more urgent dental appointments, and to recruit new dentists to areas that need them most. To rebuild dentistry in the long term, we will reform the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of National Health Service dentists.

Integrated care boards are responsible for commissioning primary care services, including NHS dentistry, to meet the needs of the local populations, and for determining the priorities for investment in their area.