Written question WQ83520

The very nature of independent and private practice means that private treatment is not part of public service provision nor is it funded through NHS investment from the Welsh Government.

However, it is a priority for the Welsh Government that dental practices do not financially fail through no fault of practice owners and contract holders at this time. I appreciate the situation dental practices in Wales that are wholly private find themselves in, however, there are no levers within NHS funding to support them. We have acknowledged the complexity of the current situation and the changing picture with regard to possible support from other UK and Welsh Government backed schemes and accept that practices may have needed to seek other sources of support to cover their non-NHS business, and to consider whether staff not usually employed on NHS work were furloughed.

In terms of wider support to businesses, to date we have provided more than £2.5bn in financial support, safeguarding over 160,000 Welsh jobs. This is in addition to a full 12 month rates holiday package for those in the hardest hit sectors. The measures we have taken are in addition to those provided by the UK Government.

The Development Bank of Wales continues to have loan and equity funding available for Welsh businesses and an additional £270m has been allocated to the Flexible Investment Fund. This means more than £500m is available through the fund up to 2030 to support the long-term success and sustainable growth of businesses, in turn creating and protecting thousands of Welsh jobs.

In addition, Business Wales has a wide range of non-financial advisory support available. For further information visit the Business Wales website

https://businesswales.gov.wales or contact the Business Wales helpline on 03000 6 03000.

The Welsh Government is continuing to work with the UK Government to ensure support from HM Treasury works for as many businesses in Wales as possible.

We know this has been a challenging time and recognise the impact that COVID-19 has had on individual members of dental teams and on the profession as a whole. The full return of dental services will continue to be gradual. We need dental practices to continue to follow strict infection control measures, including social distancing, to protect practice staff, patients and the wider community.