Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, how much his department spent on research into improving the (a) accessibility and (b) cost of dentistry in the last 12 months for which data is available.

The Department funds research through the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR). The NIHR funds clinical, public health, and social care research and works in partnership with the National Health Service, universities, local government, other research funders, patients, and the public, and has funded a range of investigative studies, including for dentistry. In the last 12 months, the Department, via the NIHR, has spent at least £9.1 million on many aspects of dental research including improving access for vulnerable populations and assessing the cost-effectiveness of preventative and workforce-led interventions. Further information about the awards can be found at the following link:

https://fundingawards.nihr.ac.uk/?query=dentistry