1 in 6 Priced out of Dental Care in Stockport

10.52.20am UTC (GMT +0000) Fri 29th Feb 2008

More than one in six people in Stockport are without dental care due to high prices, it has been revealed.

The revelation came after a poll conducted nationwide showed the true scale of the problem, with 11 million people unable even to afford a check up, estimated to include over 50,000 Stockport residents.

Commenting, local MP Andrew Stunell said:

"Despite years of promises from the Government access to dentists is worse than ever. Dental care should not be the privilege of the few that can afford it, but for everybody.

"This is the Government's hidden legacy. Half of my constituents cannot access an NHS dentist, and those that can are being hit with charges so high that they can't afford to be seen anyway.

"The Government needs to pull its head out of the sand. Now that half the adult population have teeth missing, we can't afford not to deliver affordable care".

The revelations come in the wake of a ruling by the High Court this week that the latest Government settlement for NHS dentists was "unfair and unlawful", whilst concerns over the standard of care available are so grave that the House of Commons Health Select Committee has launched an inquiry.

ENDS

Notes to editors:

1. The above findings are derived from a market research poll of 1,000 patients nationwide. The poll concluded that more than 11 million adults had not seen a dentist in the past two years.

2. Almost 8 million people have not had recommended dental work in the last eight years due to the cost.

3. The High Court branded new dentist's contracts "unfair and unlawful" on 26 February 2008. An orthodontist is pushing for a judicial review of the contracts

4. The House of Commons Health select Committee has launched an inquiry into NHS dentistry provision, and why 2006 reforms have seemingly failed to deliver.