Charlotte Cane MP Launches Constituency Survey on Access to NHS Dentistry

Charlotte Cane, Lib Dem MP for Ely and East Cambridgeshire, has today launched a survey to gather constituents’ views and experiences of accessing NHS dental services. 

The survey launch comes after Charlotte branded Ely and East Cambridgeshire a “dental desert” in a debate in the House of Commons and pleaded with the Government for more NHS dentists.

In a debate on the Government’s Health Bill last week, Charlotte told the Minister “we are in a dental desert” in Ely and East Cambridgeshire and urged the Government to commit to ambitious reform of NHS dental contracts and bring more NHS dentists to the constituency. 

Despite the Government making reform of the NHS dental contract a manifesto commitment, they have retained the system of contracting based on ‘units of dental activity’, which dentists say is not reflective of their costs and can prevent them from taking on new NHS patients, even where they have the capacity to do so.

Earlier this year, Liberal Democrat analysis of Government data showed that in Ely and East Cambridgeshire in 2025, at least 45% of children and 70% of adults have not seen a dentist in two years. Charlotte has called this data “truly shocking” and has called for guaranteed access to an NHS dentist for anyone needing emergency care, and an introduction to dental hygiene to be brought to schools and nurseries. 

Now, Charlotte has launched a survey to gather constituents’ experiences accessing NHS dental care. The survey asks constituents whether they have been able to access NHS dentistry recently, what barriers they have faced in doing so, and what consequences they have faced as a result of a lack of access. Constituents can respond by following the link - https://forms.cloud.microsoft/e/7DJXvng8zY - which can also be found on Charlotte’s social media channels. 

Commenting on the survey launch, Charlotte said: 

“Ely and East Cambridgeshire is a dental desert. For too many of my constituents, finding an NHS dentist that is accepting patients is near-impossible. This means that many people, including children, are being forced to delay treatment or end up in A&E with preventable problems. 

When I speak to dentists, they tell me that the NHS contract is broken. It is based on an outdated system which is no longer fit for purpose, failing to properly remunerate dentists for NHS care and preventing them from taking on more NHS patients. 

Now, I want to get a full picture of access to NHS dentistry across Ely and East Cambridgeshire. I’m asking residents to fill out a short online survey to share with me their experiences accessing NHS dentistry, what barriers they have faced, and what consequences this has brought. I’ll be collecting and reading these responses carefully and will be sharing these directly with the Secretary of State to call for more NHS dentists for Ely and East Cambridgeshire.”