WESTON'S Labour Party has put forward a motion to tackle the town's dentistry crisis.

Yesterday (Tuesday, January 9), a motion was made in the House of Commons to rescue NHS dentistry.

The Labour Party proposed:

  • 700,000 more urgent dentistry appointments;
  • Incentives to recruit dentists to the areas most in need;
  • Supervised toothbrushing in schools for three to five-year-olds;
  • Reform of the NHS dental contract so everyone who needs a dentist can get one.

The plan would be funded by abolishing non-dom tax status.

According to the NHS website, no dental surgeries in Weston have confirmed that they are accepting new patients.

The Labour Party has also launched a survey so that residents can share their experiences of local dental services.

Members of the Labour Party have expressed their disappointment that Weston MP, John Penrose, failed to show up for the vote.

Daniel Aldridge, policy officer at Weston Constituency Labour Party, said: "Patients in Weston are finding it impossible to see a dentist, with some having to resort to DIY dentistry. Yet when the chance came to do something about it, John Penrose MP couldn’t even be bothered to show up.

"This is despite his public commitment in October to ‘Keep pushing’ Ministers on what they’re doing to provide more NHS dentistry in Weston."

Cllr. Catherine Gibbons, deputy leader and executive member for Children's Services, Families and Life Long Learning, North Somerset Council said: "The consequences of this crisis in NHS dentistry are appalling with our children suffering some of the worst consequences, and those in care, care leavers and our SEND children facing additional barriers.

"Poor dental health plays a direct role in other diseases in later life such as heart disease and IBS. All our children deserve a good healthy start in life."

Mr Penrose said: "I’m absolutely delighted Labour now agrees with me that our NHS dentistry needs improving, as it’s something I’ve been badgering Ministers about for ages.

"The problem isn’t money – NHS dentistry has a £3bn budget – but it is underspent because dentists are leaving the national NHS dentistry contract in droves.

"We’ve had a huge increase – 40 per cent - in the numbers of dentists being trained up, and there were over six million more courses of NHS dental treatment delivered last year than the year before, but there’s a huge backlog because almost no-one saw a dentist during the pandemic.

"We need a new NHS dentist contract as well as an immediate recovery plan to get things moving much faster. That’s exactly what Ministers promised yesterday, and I shall be voting for it when it arrives in Parliament."