The new dentistry minister (the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Health with responsibility for dentistry) has confirmed that the government will review the details of the NHS dental system which was inherited from the previous government. Mr Howe also confirmed that the government’s proposed reforms will be declared once they have talked to the profession and patient groups. His comments were said during the Queen’s Speech Debate in the House of Lords, in response to a speech by Lord Colwyn, a dental surgeon and Conservative Peer. Lord Colwyn spoke of dentistry as being at ‘another crossroads’. He said that the decisions made in this Parliament to transform the delivery of NHS dentistry will be “extremely important. We have been left with an unfinished reform following the 2009 Steele review. We must grasp this opportunity if we are to improve the oral health of the nation”. Lord Colwyn, who is also an officer of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Dentistry (to which the BDA is elected secretariat), said that the challenge of reforming dentistry—to deliver a better system both for patients and dentists— comes at a time when tough financial decisions are to be made across all Whitehall departments. He also welcomed the coalition government’s commitment in their programme for government.“The acknowledgement of dentistry in this document is very positive and much needed,” he said. He also alluded to the extra regulation that dentists will have to adhere to as both NHS and private practices will have to be registered with the Care Quality Commission by the end of March next year. Lord Colwyn called the challenges ‘threefold’. “First, the Government must complete the unfinished reforms, learning from the mistakes of the much criticised 2006 contract—in particular, avoiding the failure properly to pilot change. The contract was so disastrous that it initially saw access fall dramatically. Only in the past six months has access climbed back to the level it was at in 2006. I am delighted that the government have committed to pilot any changes. “Secondly, we must pursue consistently high-quality commissioning of primary dental care. Some PCTs perform well, but many have room for improvement. They must be properly supported in their work, particularly by ensuring that they employ or have access to dental practice advisers and dental public health expertise. “Thirdly, there must be a commitment o tackling oral health nequalities to close the unacceptable chasm which exists between those with good and poor oral health as highlighted in the British Dental Association’s general election manifesto, Smiles all round,” he said. He ended his speech saying: “the coalition has made it clear that dentistry is a priority. The task now is to work out the detail with the profession, to deliver real change for patients and dentists.” DT