House of Commons inquiry into NHS dentistry

In January, we made a submission to the House of Commons Health and Social Care Select Committee's inquiry into NHS dentistry, and used the opportunity to make a strong case for the reform of the GDC.

The legislation dentists are working under is among the oldest of all the regulated healthcare professions in the UK. As the government continues to move forward slowly on its regulatory reform agenda, we are urging ministers not to leave dental professionals at the back of the queue.

That is not to say the GDC can't reform their processes and improve the regulation of dentists in the meantime - they certainly can, and we are engaging with them on that subject. But for sizeable reforms, like accepted outcomes in fitness to practise proceedings to bring cases to a swifter conclusion, we need legislative reform. This is a big campaigning focus for the DDU in the year ahead.

Scope of practice

In May, we responded to the GDC's consultation on its proposed revisions to its scope of practice guidance. While the GDC have taken some positive steps to improve the guidance, we are urging them to better define, clearly, what each group of registrants can do - and what they cannot do.

For the regulation of dental professionals to be fair and consistent, supporting guidance needs to deliver as much certainty as possible on this point, and we will be working with the GDC on this.

We do not want to stifle innovations in practice. Quite the opposite, we just want to ensure we achieve maximum clarity for all members of the dental team, so they can be sure they remain working within their scope of practice.

Indemnity arrangements

June brought another GDC consultation, this time on the subject of indemnity, and the organisation's guidance for the dental team.

We want to make sure the guidance is clear and helpful for our members. In our response, we said that as far as the DDU is concerned, the significance of the guidance goes beyond ensuring that GDC registrants are aware of their legal, regulatory obligations to have appropriate indemnity or insurance in place - vitally important though that is. We see a core purpose of this guidance as being a reminder to dental professionals that they have a range of options available to fulfil this obligation; multiple options, whether indemnity or insurance in nature.

We are proud of the indemnity offer we provide to the dental profession and believe our dentist-for-dentist ethos, with our strong success rates in defending members, is why so many dental professionals choose us as their provider of choice.

Engagement with the government on top-up-fees

There has been much debate about the implications of the Court of Appeal ruling on the permissibility of so called top-up fees after it found against the GDC. Dentists are now faced with a situation where they must not only try to interpret the regulations, but also the Court of Appeal's ruling and the extent to which top-up fees are permissible.

That is why since the judgment was circulated, the DDU has been doing all it can to secure more information for the profession from the government, and we have already met with the DHSC urging it to act urgently to clarify the position. This is such an important issue for our members. Whatever solution the government has to rectify the situation with the regulations, it is important they do so quickly. The current situation is unsatisfactory for everyone.