CHESTER MP Chris Matheson has highlighted a growing dentistry crisis, after a city centre dentist informed his 7,500 patients he can no longer provide his service on the NHS.

Dr Simon Gallier, a dentist of almost 40 years, has been running the Foregate Street Dental Clinic since purchasing the practice in March 2019, and investing six-figure sums to provide extra surgeries to deliver suitable NHS services for patients and staff.

But, as of March 31, 2022, Dr Gallier said he will no longer be able to provide dentistry on the NHS, and his practice will go private.

In a letter to Mr Matheson, a copy of which has been seen by The Standard, he said the decision was not one he had taken lightly, but he had been "horrified" by the type of dentistry required to deliver an NHS contract whilst still running a viable business.

Much of the criticism centres around the so-called 'UDA' system that the NHS uses for dental contracts, or 'units of dental activity'.

UDA is used to measure a practice's activity, with set targets a practice must achieve or they face being forced to hand back money. More complex procedures take up more 'UDA' units.

If practices fail to meet a certain level of their pre-Covid activity, they face significant financial penalties.

Dr Gallier believes he will not be alone in the NHS dentistry exodus, saying: "I personally believe that NHS dentistry is in terminal decline and I will be just one of many handing contracts back.

"The current UDA-based contract, introduced in 2006, has been condemned by all sides of the political divide."

Speaking in a Westminster Hall petition debate on Monday, Mr Matheson said: "Some people are being told that they may have to wait up to two years for an NHS dental appointment.

"Over the past few months, many of my constituents have told me the difficulties that they have had in finding and accessing an NHS dentist in my constituency and the surrounding areas. On average, there are only 4.4 dentists per 10,000 people in England, and the number is shrinking.

"With shortages of staff, a lack of funding, the pressures of the pandemic and dissatisfaction with NHS dentists’ contracts, the waiting lists are growing. Many dental practices are feeling pressure to turn private just to be able to cover wages and equipment costs, and to survive as a business."

Mr Matheson had been in contact with Mr Gallier, whose practice has about 7,500 active patients.

The MP continued: “Practices around the country are doing this not through choice, but out of necessity and lack of funding. Dr Gallier just cannot make ends meet.

"Indeed, in the last year for which figures were available, 2018-19, the amount spent on dentistry fell in real terms, compared with the six years previously. While the £50 million announced recently by the Minster is welcome, only £7 million of that will go to dentistry in the North West, which is clearly insufficient when the national budget for England was over £2 billion in 2019.

“With fewer NHS dental practices, many constituents have no choice but to go private – an option many will not be able to afford, especially given the cost-of-living crisis we face.

"I worry that the Tory masterplan all along has been to starve the NHS of funding, resulting in inevitable back-door privatisation – or perhaps there has been a more sinister scheme to monetise dentistry, as there has been in similar services, including some GP practices and many vets practices.”

Last week it was announced the NHS will be able to provide up to 350,000 more dental appointments across the UK, after a £50 million funding injection.

Of that fund, £7,310,000 will go to the North West.

Children, people with learning disabilities, autism, or severe mental health problems, will be prioritised as part of a dentistry treatment push over the coming months, with the one-off funding available until the end of the financial year.

Minister for Primary Care Maria Caulfield said: “Access to NHS dentistry has been given a much needed boost with an extra £50 million announced for NHS dental care services which will urgently give more people access to vital dental care when they need it.

“Through the pandemic, we have prioritised urgent dental needs, vulnerable patients and free treatment for children and thanks to the hard work of staff, the delivery of urgent care is back to pre-pandemic levels. We are now working with the dental sector to recover and reform services and this £50 million boost will help with that recovery."