08/09/2026
The scale of dentists handing back their NHS contracts and going private is higher than ever before.
The current NHS contract leaves practices making a loss when treating more complex patients, and has driven an exodus of dentists to the private sector. The numbers just don't add up any more.
British dentistry has quietly transformed into a 2-tier service, in which access increasingly rests on what people can afford to pay and where they live.
Everyone should have access to NHS dentistry, and the system is in urgent need of reform.
Sign my petition to protect NHS dentistry funding here:
https://www.middorsetlibdems.org.uk/petitions/properly-fund-dentistry