Leader of the Welsh Conservatives and Clwyd West MS Darren Millar has expressed his deep concern that six more dental practices in North Wales have decided to terminate their NHS contracts.
In recent years the region has suffered the loss of a number of NHS dental practices, and Darren has repeatedly called on Ministers in Cardiff Bay to address the situation.
He was therefore disappointed to hear this week that on 31st March 2026, a further six practices across North Wales will be terminating their NHS contracts, resulting in a loss of around 3% of commissioned activity, with a total of 6,670 patients affected.
Providers in Rhos on Sea (Belmont), Mold (Bryn Siriol), Caernarfon (Castle Square), Pwllheli (Penlan), Bangor (Bulkeley) and Cemaes Bay have all confirmed their intention to terminate their NHS contracts, with the majority citing the outcome of the Welsh Government’s Dental Reform Consultation as their reason for withdrawal.
Four of the six are currently delivering services to limited categories of patients (u18s, u19s, exempt adults and those in full-time education) and do not wish to accept all categories of patients from April 2026, in line with the terms of the new contract.
Commenting, Darren said:
“This is extremely concerning news, particularly given that we have already witnessed the closure of a good number of NHS dentists throughout North Wales in recent years.
“The Welsh Government was warned that unless it acted to address concerns raised by the dentistry profession about its new dental contract, many dentists in Wales would withdraw from the provision of NHS services, but it refused to listen and we now find ourselves in this position.
“As I have repeatedly told Minister in Cardiff Bay, I have constituents who travel to Scotland in order to access an NHS dentist and others who are travelling to Albania to get their teeth sorted. There are even people pulling their own teeth out because they can’t access a dentist.
“It is absolutely barbaric in this day and age, and the situation seems to be getting worse by the day.
“I recently wrote to Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board about this matter and will continue putting pressure on them, and the Welsh Government, until they start to deliver a dental service that people can easily access and depend on.”
- Patients who require access to NHS dental care are encouraged to register on the NHS Wales Dental Access Portal, from which they will be allocated to an NHS dental practice in their area based on how long they have been without a dentist.
