6. Statement by the Minister for Health and Social Services: Dental Reform

Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:50 pm on 14 March 2023.

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Photo of Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Baroness Mair Eluned Morgan Labour 4:50, 14 March 2023

Thanks very much, Russell. I think what I tried to make clear in my opening statement is that, actually, there is—we’ve acknowledged that there is—a multitier system. I mean, this is not something new. It has always been the case, that there has been an NHS system and there’s been a private system. So I absolutely recognise that; I wasn’t trying to deny that that’s the case. And whilst I accept that some people say that they can’t afford an NHS dentist, and I completely understand that, in reality, about 50 per cent of people in Wales are eligible for free dental care. That’s the situation as it is at the moment. [Interruption.] It’s 50 per cent of—