Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps his Department is taking to ensure that veterans who leave the armed forces can access NHS dental care.

We are working to improve access to National Health Service dentistry, which will also benefit our valued members of the Armed Forces community, including our respected veterans who have spent their careers defending our country.

We are committed to reforming the dental contract, with a shift to focus on prevention and the retention of NHS dentists. The Government’s ambition is to deliver fundamental contract reform before the end of this Parliament. Veterans will be able to benefit from the improved access these changes bring.

We are also supporting more than 1,500 children in British military families overseas through our supervised toothbrushing programme. Free NHS dental care is available to people who meet the following criteria:

• under 18 years old, or under 19 years old and in full-time education;
• pregnant or have had a baby in the previous 12 months;
• being treated in an NHS hospital and the treatment is carried out by the hospital dentist, although patients may have to pay for any dentures or bridges;
• receiving low-income benefits, or under 20 years old and a dependant of someone receiving low-income benefits; and/or
• receiving War Pension Scheme payments, or Armed Forces Compensation Scheme payments and the treatment is for your accepted disability.