Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, whether she has made an assessment of the potential merits of establishing an independent ombudsman for private dental patients.

No assessment has been made and there are no plans at present. The General Dental Council provides advice on its website about how private dental patients may pursue complaints about their treatment, including raising concerns about any risks to the public posed by the individual who treated them. Further information is available at the following link:

https://www.gdc-uk.org/raising-concerns/how-to-get-a-refund-or-make-a-complaint