§ Mr. WoodTo ask the Secretary of State for Health what the remit is of the Dental Practice Board; what the objectives of the Dental Practice Board are; who sets the objectives; how the performance of the Dental Practice Board will be monitored; and what the budget of the board is. [32833]
§ Ms BlearsThe Dental Practice Board is a statutory NHS body with responsibilities for vetting treatment claims from, and paying remuneration to, dentists providing general dental services and certain personal dental services under the NHS.
Its objectives are mainly to ensure that payment claims are accurately processed, that dental treatments and payments are monitored for probity and quality, including independent professional scrutiny by dentists employed within its Dental Reference Service, and to provide appropriate information on dental payments and the provision of services. The Secretary of State for Health and the National Assembly for Wales set the objectives of the Dental Practice Board.
The Department of Health on behalf of the Secretary of State monitors the performance of the Dental Practice Board for Health and by the National Assembly for Wales.
330WThe core administrative budget for the Dental Practice Board for the year 2001–02 is:
£ Capital England 703,000 Wales 37,000 Revenue England 21,358,000 Wales 1,124,000