BDA statement: £12 slashed from care for every man, woman and child in England since 2010

Parliamentary Questions raised by Peter Dowd MP have found the government’s spend per head of population on high street services has hit new lows. The equivalent of nearly £42 per head was set aside by government to cover dental care for every adult and child in England at the outset of the Coalition Government in 2010, falling by over £12 in real terms in 2017/18, a 29 per cent fall.

The BDA have described current funding arrangements as cuts by stealth, accusing ministers of driving a ‘do more with less’ mentality to breaking point. Budgets have failed to keep pace with inflation and population growth of three million, and as state contributions have fallen, patients have been asked to contribute ever more through NHS charges.

Charge levels have increased by over 30 per cent since 2010, and now account for almost 30 per cent of the total budget for NHS dentistry. The total NHS dental budget is currently sufficient to cover care for around half the English population.