Llyr Gruffydd MS Member of the Senedd for North Wales

A dental practice in Rhos-on-Sea is the latest to end its NHS contract with the health board – the fifth in north Wales over the past three months.

The “accelerating crisis” in NHS dental care across the North has been highlighted by Llyr Gruffydd MS, who has previously warned of NHS dental care facing extinction.

Mr Gruffydd said: “This is an accelerating crisis as dental practice after dental practice hands back their contracts. We’ve seen this happen on Ynys Mon, in Llandudno, Coedpoeth and Buckley and now it’s Rhos-on-Sea. From talking to dentists, the problem appears to be the new contracts introduced by the Labour Government. Although well intentioned, they are not working and it’s obvious from the growing number of dental practices opting out that it needs tackling before NHS dental care disappears completely.

“It’s also clear that Betsi Cadwaladr health board is aware of the pressures. Whereas three months ago it was telling patients about alternative NHS dental provision in the region, the latest announcement states: ‘The Health Board does not hold information on which practices have capacity to accept new NHS patients, as this position is subject to regular change. We therefore recommend that patients contact practices periodically, to ask if they can be added to their NHS waiting list.’

“We have warned Labour ministers that this is a serious problem and they are doing nothing about it. We have asked the health board to respond to requests from dentists to be able to treat under-18s on NHS contracts and that’s been rejected. Both are sitting on their hands and doing nothing while this key aspect of the NHS is dismantled before our very eyes.

“The additional cost of private dental care to families – more than £500 a year for a family of four – at a time of an ongoing cost-of-living crisis is a very real issue. But more serious is the growing number of people who have no dental cover. We’ve asked for numbers and are told by the health board that they don’t know. The long-term damage to people’s dental health is incalculable.”

Mr Gruffydd added: “Plaid Cymru is committed to the NHS and access to NHS dental care. We’ve campaigned for a Dental School to train more dentists here in north Wales. That’s a longer-term solution to ensuring we have enough trained dentists but, in the meantime, we need to see the Labour Government in Cardiff take the dental crisis in north Wales seriously.”