Rishi Sunak has come under fire from the BDA for providing a “grotesque misrepresentation” of what the NHS dentistry sector is currently experiencing.

Cat Smith, a Labour MP, asked the PM about access to dental care, to which Sunak said that the money invested into dentistry has been amplified, and that there are increasing numbers of dentists working in the UK.

“Cat Smith has subsequently written to Sunak to request that he amend the parliamentary record“

However, the BDA has said that “not one of these claims is accurate”, pushing for the PM to “correct the record”. The organisation claims that staffing levels in dentistry have dropped, with the workforce seeing just 24,272 dentists perform NHS activity in England during 2021-2022. This is lower than levels seen in 2017-2018.

Dentists have described how spending in their sector has experienced a “decade of savage real terms cuts”. The BDA calculates that reinstating dental resourced to what they were in would cost an additional annual investment of £1.5 billion due to inflation levels.

BDA chairman, Eddie Crouch, claimed that “the Prime Minister has offered a grotesque misrepresentation of a crisis facing millions. Our patients are living with the reality.”

“The facts are there are no new dentists, no new contract and no new money. All we’ve seen are tweaks at the margins. We need honesty, ambition and investment to save a service on its last legs.”

Cat Smith has subsequently written to Sunak to request that he amend the parliamentary record.

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