Speeches by Beales.

“So it is fundamentally a question of funding. You have talked about the CSR for this Government, but from what this Committee has seen, including from the Public Accounts Committee, and from what you have all submitted in evidence, significant contract reform has not happened for more than a decade, if not longer. Do y…”

“Why do you think that that has not happened? We have seen contract reform in general practice and in pharmacy, albeit that it is not what they would like to see completely. Why do you think that for so long dentistry has not seen that fundamental contract reform?”

“Those are experiences that I think all MPs here have heard.”

“The majority of my constituents cannot find an NHS dentist. What do we need to learn from the previous attempts at reform? You mentioned some of the implications of previous attempts.”

“What if we do not get there? From a dentist and patient perspective, what are the implications over the next 10 years if that does not happen?”

“As I say, I think more than half of my constituents cannot get an NHS dentist. Does the BDA have any sense of where it will go unless we address NHS access and the number of dentists?”

“Significant reform is difficult: it requires a lot of negotiation and it is complex. Practically, is there time in this Parliament to have a significantly reformed contract? How would you envisage getting there? What would the process be, from the BDA’s perspective?”

“Both need to happen in parallel with the current tweaks, which it seems you broadly support.”

“Do you have any evidence of what the financial costs are of not reforming the dentistry system? Have you any modelling about that? I think Healthwatch colleagues talked about 30,000 children being admitted to hospital. The financial cost of inaction seemed to be significant, too. Have you any data about that?”

“Lord Darzi said in his review of the NHS that “urgent action is needed to develop a contract that balances activity and prevention” and “is attractive to dentists”. Do you think that the action you are taking does that?”

“I appreciate that you agree on the problem, but I come back to the urgency. Do you feel that urgency is being shown? I take the point that the timetable is challenging, but can you accept that in the absence of a timetable for more fundamental reform, it does feel urgent? Again, I take my colleague’s point about comple…”

“Primary care and secondary care more generally. It would be good to understand how the increases—hopefully—in the budget relate and compare with other areas of care, to understand relative prioritisation.”

“Thank you, Chair. The NHS 10-year plan is incredibly significant for digital transformation. It is one of the three major shifts in reforming the NHS and fixing some of the underlying issues. In terms of the published 10-year plan, could you outline your perspective? Is it as ambitious on digital transformation as you …”

“It is good to hear that you are happy with what you wrote. In implementing it, there is an underlying significant reform and shift. We have heard previously about the shift of NHSX and NHS Digital into NHS England. NHS England is now ceasing to exist. ICBs are being merged; accountable care organisations are being set …”

“To challenge that point, the centre is getting smaller but ICBS are having to reduce their headcount by 50%. A lot of trusts are being directed to frontline-focus on resource, which often means management being cut, and digital usually sits within an operational capacity. Is there a risk that at every level the capacit…”

“Is capacity being protected for digital at local and national level?”

“So I can take it as a yes from your perspective, nationally.”

“Amy, perhaps you could give a local perspective on implementation.”

“Is their market exposure always assessed in contracting?”

“That is not possible now. Most trusts do not have access to community care records. At the moment, that does not happen. If you turn up at A&E, they can’t say, “You saw the mental health services in Northumberland, and that’s what they prescribed you.” That doesn’t work now. There is a risk for people with complex and …”