Another 2,400 overseas-trained dentists, many of whom are already living in this country, could be registered annually from 2028/29, according to ministers
Thousands of dentists trained overseas will be able to treat people in the UK under a shake-up to registration exams.
Ministers will boost places for professional registration exams to speed up the timeframe for dentists trained abroad to work in Britain.
Another 2,400 overseas-trained dentists, many of whom are already living in this country, could be registered annually from 2028/29, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.
But the British Dental Association (BDA) branded the reforms a “quick fix” and questioned whether the changes are at odds with the Home Office’s immigration plans.
Last week, Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood unveiled proposals to make migrants wait longer before they can get settled status in the UK. A consultation will determine the details of the plans, which could see waits double from five years to 10 years.
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In an interview with The Mirror, Health minister Stephen Kinnock said his team are watching closely for the details of what the Home Office decides. He said: “It’s definitely on the radar of the team here at the Department for Health and Social care and we’ll be watching with great interest what the Home Office recommends and how that all pans out.”
But he said urgent action is required amid some 8,000 people waiting to take the Licence in Dental Surgery (LDS) exam so they can practise in the UK. He blamed “Tory neglect and incompetence” for the spiralling backlog.
Under Mr Kinnock’s plan, places for the final part of the LDS exam – a test that overseas-trained dentists can take in order to practise in the UK – are being increased tenfold from 180 to 1,800 by 2028. This is backed by a one-off £420,000 grant.
The Mirror has long campaigned for everyone to have access to an NHS dentist. Overseas qualified dentists do a “disproportionate amount of their time” in NHS dentistry. Mr Kinnock admitted that more needs to be done to incentivise British dentists to work in the NHS, instead of in the private sector.
Asked why foreign workers are more likely to work in the NHS, he said: “I think the answer to your question around overseas dentists is simply that they are very keen to get work, to get into work, to help and put something back in as well.
“I think they’re obviously here to make a better life for themselves. And they are, of course, exactly the kind of immigrants that the vast majority of the British public would want to see.”
He said the government’s reforms to the dental contract, including upping the amount paid for each Unit of Dental Activity (UDA) will help incentivise British dentists to work in the NHS when they come into force next month. Dental practices are currently paid around £40 per UDA but for this will increase to £75 for urgent appointments.
The Government has also announced an extra 50 dentists will be trained in England every year from 2027, with the Office for Students (OfS) ordered to prioritise new training places in so-called dental deserts which do not currently train dentists.
BDA Chair Eddie Crouch said: “This seismic change to the dental workforce feels like a quick fix. This is a radical break from approaches taken to every other health profession. More new dentists will come through this pipeline than will graduate from UK dental schools.
“These dentists will need wrap-around support to enable them to deliver NHS care. We certainly don’t have an immigration policy that offers real certainty they can build a future here.
“But ultimately, it doesn’t matter whether a dentist qualifies in Manchester or Mumbai. We won’t keep talent working within a failed, underfunded NHS system without real change.”