00:00 New figures obtained by the Liberal Democrats found 4.4 million children in England were
00:05 not seen by an NHS dentist in the year to June 2023.
00:09 And the situation is even worse for adults. The figures show that 51% of them have not
00:14 been seen by an NHS dentist in the past two years.
00:17 It's an issue that's reflected in other parts of the UK too, with Senedd members in Wales
00:21 saying easy access to dentists was in crisis.
00:24 Commenting on the figures, British Dental Association Chairman Eddie Crouch said, "Our
00:29 youngest patients are already paying the price for a crisis made in Westminster. These access
00:33 problems are the result of political choices. Every political party needs to wake up and
00:38 offer a plan of action, otherwise this service won't have a future."
00:42 A Department of Health and Social Care spokesman said, "We're making progress to boost NHS
00:47 dental services and the number of children seen by NHS dentists rose by more than 43%
00:52 last year. Further measures to improve access and increase the number of NHS dentists through
00:56 our dental recovery plan will be set out shortly.
Comments