Extra 35,000 urgent dentist appointments promised

More than 35,000 urgent NHS dental appointments will be made available to patients across the South West, Health Minister Stephen Kinnock has announced.

In total, 700,018 extra appointments will be created across England with 24,269 in Devon and 10,910 in Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly.

According to the government, the extra appointments will be available from April and have been targeted at "dental deserts" - areas where patients particularly struggle to access NHS dentists.

Kinnock said: "We promised we would end the misery faced by hundreds of thousands of people unable to get urgent dental care. Today we're starting to deliver on that commitment."

A government spokesperson said the extra appointments would be for patients who are likely to be in pain - including those suffering from infections or needing repairs to a bridge - and require urgent treatment.

Eligible patients will be able to access the appointments by contacting their usual dental practice or calling NHS 111 if they do not have a regular dentist or need help out of hours.

Ben Maguire, Liberal Democrat MP for North Cornwall, welcomed the announcement but called for "radical reform" to solve the "crisis".

He said: "With one in five dentists having left Cornwall since 2019, families are being forced to pull out their own teeth or send children to A&E with life-threatening infections.

"The government must now go further by fixing the failed NHS dental contract, bringing in more NHS dentists with targeted recruitment incentives, and introducing mobile emergency dental units to reach our hardest-hit rural communities.

"Anything less is an insult to the people still suffering without basic dental care, and I will be keeping the pressure on until the crisis is solved once and for all."

Luke Pollard, Labour MP for Plymouth Sutton and Devonport, acknowledged there was "lots to be done" but said the government's announcement was "an important step forward".

He said: "It comes after the announcement that Peninsula are opening a new dental clinic in Plymouth City Centre, which I have been pushing for with them and Plymouth City Council since I was elected as an MP.

"I will keep campaigning until everyone in our city has access to NHS dentistry."

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