I am grateful for the opportunity to draw the attention of the House to an issue that affects millions of British people and families right across our country: the current state of NHS dental services throughout the UK.
Our NHS dentistry, from which I and so many others in North Down have benefited, as have countless people across our United Kingdom, was founded on the basic principle—indeed, I would call it a promise—that everyone regardless of income, background or postcode should be able to access essential dental care when they need it. It is a foundational pillar of our wider health system and a critical measure of our nation’s public health. Every Member of this House would do well to ask where that basic principle and promise now stands in Britain in 2026.
Our NHS dentistry is under severe and unsustainable strain. I want to speak plainly about where we are, why and how we have reached this point, how it is affecting both patients and professionals alike, and, if we are truly serious about saving NHS dentistry for future generations, what must be done if it is to be resolved.
Across North Down, Northern Ireland and, indeed, the whole United Kingdom, the picture is deeply disturbing and for too many, painfully familiar. Finding an NHS dentist has become increasingly difficult. My constituents in North Down, like so many in England, Scotland and Wales, are joining waiting lists that stretch for months and in some cases even years. Some are ringing multiple practices in their area only to be met with the same response: “We are not taking on NHS patients.” Others are told that their only option is to go private or travel long distances simply to access basic dental care.
I would love to tell the House that this is a marginal problem that affects only a small minority, but it is increasingly becoming the lived reality of British families, older people and children in towns, cities and rural communities across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The reality in Britain is that fewer practices are offering NHS appointments, there are growing backlogs for routine check-ups, and increasing numbers of patients are turning up with dental pain and infection at GPs or accident and emergency departments—places that were never designed for dental care.