Debate contribution: NHS Dentistry

Debate contribution by Miss Órlaithí Flynn on 28 April 2026.

MLA

Miss Órlaithí Flynn

Party at the time

Sinn Féin

Date

28 April 2026

Type

Debate contribution

Business

Private Members' Business

Heading

NHS Dentistry

Assembly identifier

Official Report component 5510144

Read the official Assembly record

Text

What we are discussing here today is not just dentistry; it is equality and access to basic healthcare. Our constituents deserve a health service that works for everyone, not just those who can afford to go private. The reality that people face is deeply concerning. As has been mentioned, we know that only around half of adults here are registered with an NHS dentist. That clearly points to a system that is moving in the wrong direction. It is also often the case — Sinéad just made the point — that it is those in working-class and deprived communities, such as Foyle, West Belfast and North Belfast, who are hardest hit. As an MLA for West Belfast, I am contacted pretty regularly by constituents who simply cannot access an NHS dentist for themselves or their family. My colleague Philip McGuigan mentioned the lapsed registrations in his constituency. I am worried about those figures. I am not sure whether the Minister will be able to touch on some of the detail in his response, but, in West Belfast last year alone, there were 29,606 lapsed registrations. I want a wee bit of clarity on why those numbers are so high, because I am not sure what the reason is, but it is obviously pointing to an issue. On the one hand, we are dealing with people who are coming to our offices because they cannot get registered with a dental practice, and, on the other hand, there are thousands of people who are coming off that dental system altogether and just being lost from it. I do not know whether that is linked to "could not attends". I do not even know whether it is the same sort of system. If someone cannot attend, are they being struck off the list, and is it then harder for them to get back onto it? If the Minister has any information on why those figures are so high, that would be useful. Points have already been raised about the issue of people turning up at emergency departments because they have nowhere else to go. We know that emergency departments are not equipped to deal with chronic dental health conditions. We also know about the issues that they are dealing with when it comes to very young children in particular, some of whom have to go through surgery for their dental condition and end up in an emergency department, which puts additional pressure on our EDs. The issue of dentists being pushed out of NHS provision has been covered by most of the other Members who have spoken, so we know about the rise in operating costs, the outdated payment model and the absence of any long-term planning. We talk about strategies, Minister, but there is a need for a new oral health strategy. It might not be right up the priority list with all of the other important work that you need to do, but we need some sort of timeline for how we get the work pushed forward, including trying to support workforce planning and the reform of the dental payment system. Those are important and necessary pieces of work. We are still waiting for the cost-of-service review. Is there any update on the funded action plan for reform in dentistry? The big thing for me is that, as we know, our whole NHS health system is meant to be based on need, but, at the minute, that principle is clearly not being met, especially when we look at the state of our dental care.

593 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.

Assessment

Not flagged

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Assessed 21 October 2026 at 15:28 UTC by jev-1.13.0 (requested as typesafe/jev) under rubric 2026.10-r9, methodology 1.9.

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