Dentists in Fife: number of dentists in Fife fall by more than 30 in three years

Research by the Scottish Liberal Democrat research based on a Freedom Of Information (FoI) request showed that the total number had dropped from 257 in 2019-20 to 225 in 2022-23.

Fife was one of eleven health boards across Scotland which saw a drop in numbers.

Alex Cole-Hamilton, leader of the Lib Dems, said: “Dentists are stopping offering NHS services because of the low rates they receive for NHS work and the barriers thrown in their way by Scottish Government ministers.

“For many of them the pandemic was the last straw. They have decided it is simply less hassle to work privately.”

He said his party’s research had revealed that one in five people who cannot get a dentist appointment decide to turn to unlicensed alternatives or perform dental work on themselves. He described that as “simply barbaric.”

Mr Cole-Hamilton continued: “We believe that toothcare, like any other form of healthcare, should be universally accessible - it cannot just be for those who can afford to pay privately.”He is calling on the Scottish Government to “rewrite its NHS Recovery Plan to give dentists the recognition they deserve and to reform funding structures so that dentists can once again take on NHS patients.”