HI Colwyn down there in Edinburgh. The position in Scotland is not good. Aberdeen has only a few NHS dentists and the further north you go dentists of any variety are as scarce as hens' teeth

don, aaberdeen, uk

I am not getting it for free,I am paying for the NHS everyweek with tax taken from my wages.If the Government would like to reduce the amount of tax paid for the NHS I would take out dental insurance.Those tax payers who go private are paying the Government for a service that they are not using.

Alan Gelson, Thame, U.K

In response to Jo. I'm a dentist in practice and I know that most people could afford private dental treatment. It's all about priorities. People will happily tell you that they can't afford a checkup for 20 quid but brag about their new plasma screen tv, laptop and new car. Down with the nash!

Graham, Cardiff, Wales

If I could afford to pay for a dentist then I would, its not through choice that people suffer in agonising pain, unfortunatly not everyone has the luxury of spare money, some of us are struggling on what we've got.
The future for those who RELY on the NHS looks bleak.

Jo, Ynys Mon, North Wales

Yet another fine example of how government intervention in something that should be private just doesn't work.

In the states, dental health care is relatively cheap. You don't really need an insurance plan to have healthy teeth. Regular checkups aren't even covered by most policies I've had in the past, so I always wound up having to pay out of pocket anyway.

Take the government out of it, and dental care becomes dirt cheap. Force insurance regulations and forced managed care, and then call it a disaster then socialize the crap out of it, and it becomes a boondoggle.

Doug, Davis, California

Ha ha! I hope that all Labour MPs and their offspring are not "permitted" to have access to private dentistry and any that do are outed in the press. And that their toothache presents on the friday of a bank holiday weekend.

marian, auckland,

Note this is only the case in England and Wales. In Scotland we have nationalised dental healthcare which, despite some access problems, works a whole lot better.

Colwyn, Edinburgh,

the dentists problem sounds like the medical problems we have in germany, but we've that all the year and not just for a few weeks.

How valuable is human vitality and health? - I think at the present time, it's not very precious. You need half a fortune to be healthy and if you have not enough money to pay the treatment you are unwell.

That all made no sense and I ca not call that a Health System at all.

Kati, Munich, Germany

How are some dentists unable to use all their units?? Should these dentists just be giving more time to their NHS patients in the first place and less to the private ones? I don't agree with the new system. It is not working at all and is even being abused by some.

MC, Reigate, England

The new nhs dental contract is a disaster for both patients and dentists. I would not have nhs dental care, unless in a teaching hospital. General dental practice on the nhs is not workable with this style of contract, and nhs dentistry is a dead duck.

marcus clery, london,

Bernard,if you visited your dentist on a 6 monthly basis, toothache should not occur.
With the exception of pensioners and the very poor, it is high time the British people started to take some responsibility for their own dental health.

Bill, Gawler, Australia/S.A

You cannot blame the government. There is a set amount of money that is available for dental services. This has been spent. So what???
Can't patients pay a dentist to see them privately? Surely that is better than having toothache for a month.

Why does everybody want everything for free??

Ian Robertson, Manchester,

Socialized medicine at its finest...

Travis Snyder, henderson, nv

America - this is what nationalize health care will look like.

Scott, Phoenix, USA

What ever happened to just being able to go and see your dentist? Roll on the next general election.

judy, Liverpool, England

"The health department says dentists should have managed their workload throughout the year.2
I must remember in future only to get toothache at a convenient time for the Departmnet of Health.

Bernard, Edinburgh, Scotland

This the reductio ad absurdam of the Government's system of quotas for public service personnel.

It should stop meddling and just let people get on with their lives and jobs.

Bill, Suzhou, China