EVERY single dentist in Ashford has closed its doors to new NHS patients, it has emerged.

Ashford MP Damian Green has revealed that of the town’s 12 dental practices, not one is now accepting any additional adult patients on the NHS.

And it is becoming even harder to find an alternative outside the area. The MP said the Ashford Primary Care Trust’s target for finding a dentist for NHS patients within a 10 kilometre radius of where they live had fallen from 89 per cent to 64 per cent.

He warned the area was facing a crisis that was bound to get worse if nothing was done to improve the numbers of dentists practising.

The MP highlighted the figures during a Westminster debate in which he called on health minister Rosie Winterton to act.

“You now cannot get on a dental list in Ashford at a time when 2,000 more people are moving into the district each year. The Primary Care Trust is working very hard and I am not criticising it. But given this is a growth area designated by the Government, I believe Ashford is a special case and the Government needs to help. Ministers must make sure essential public services are available and provide the investment necessary.”

He warned the crisis could be compounded if some dentists carried out a threat to go completely private because of their fears over a new contract being imposed on them by government.

“There is a lot of uncertainty among dentists about this new contract,” he said.

The contract is aimed at encouraging dentists to do more preventative work but some fear it will leave them worse off.

In a statement, the Ashford Primary Care Trust said it was working to improve the situation.

It said: “Ashford Primary Care Trust considers that solving the problem of access to NHS dentistry is a priority. To support this process the PCT is working with dentists to look at ways of helping people to see an NHS Dentist.

"This includes working with high street dentists, the community dental service and the Dental Access Centre based at Vicarage Lane in Ashford.”

"The PCT has recently established additional anaesthesia sessions at Benenden Hospital to reduce waiting times for anaesthesia services for children.

"The PCT is also increasing the number of sessions at the Dental Access Centre for patients in need of URGENT treatment who are not registered with an NHS dentist.”