HC Deb 23 March 1965 vol 709 cc66-7W
Mr. John Wells

asked the Minister of Health if he will publish in the OFFICIAL REPORT the total number of dental surgeons employed in the National Health Service and their total remuneration in each year since its establishment; and what estimate he has of the total number of dental surgeons in practice in 1938 and their total remuneration.

Mr. K. Robinson

The number of dentists employed in the hospital and general dental services is given in columns 2 and 3 of the table below; some of these dentists may be employed in both services. The remuneration of dentists for general dental services is given in column 4; that of dentists in the hospital service is not separately recorded.

Year Hospital Service General Dental Services
Number of dentists (whole-time equivalent, excluding honorary officers) Number of dentists (a) Total Remuneration (b)
(1) (2) (3) (4)
£
1948–9 (d) 206 9,495 49,331,000
1950 268 9,657 40,495,000
1951 301 9,694 33,914,761
1952 325 9,485 27,004,068
1953 314 9,473 26,451,853
1954 309 9,599 28,977,330
1955 345 9,788 33,286,816
1956 357 9,924 37,145,781
1957 384 10,156 40,715,051
1958 398 10,274 43,923,954
1959 382 10,418 47,491,302
1960 399 10,254 50,619,341
1961 414 10,450 53,649,332
1962 449 10,540 54,561,046
1963 471 10,496 54,856,935
1964 (c) (c) 57,819,140

(a) Full-time or part-time. There is some duplication in the figures before 1960 where dentists practised as both principal and assistant or in more than one Executive Council area.

(b) Including reimbursement of practice expenses. Excluding salaries to dentists in health centres which rose from £4,860 in 1948–9 to £24,431 in 1963–4.

(c) Not yet known.

(d) July, 1948-December, 1949.

I have no estimate with which to answer the second part of the Question.