Part of 2. Questions to the Minister for Health and Social Services – in the Senedd at 2:55 pm on 8 March 2023.
Thank you for your response, Minister. As one of those people who aren't registered with an NHS dentist in north Wales, last week I decided to contact every dentist in north Wales on the health board's website to see if they'd be willing to take on a new patient such as me. I contacted 69 dentists, spoke to 57 of those practices, and, staggeringly, just four of those practices in the whole of north Wales were looking to take on new patients, but those four who were willing to take them on were only willing to put me on a waiting list for up to two years. Along with this, one well-known group of dentists were advising callers that, due to Welsh Government's dentistry reform programme, they were unable to see NHS patients for routine check-ups, and they were openly saying this. Concerns have also been raised by the north Wales dental committee, stating that they're close to breaking point with NHS dentistry. So, in light of this, Minister, what assurances can you give that when you make your statement next week on dental reform, that will set out a route for residents in north Wales to access NHS dentistry in the very near future?