The Scottish Liberal Democrats have made a promise to allow patients to see an NHS dentist on their first visit as their primary policy for the general election campaign. The leader, Alex Cole-Hamilton, accused both the SNP and Conservative governments either side of the border for the “neglect” involved in oral healthcare, creating “dental deserts” in the UK regions. This delay causes patients in Scotland to perform dental work on themselves at home, leading to some ordering dental kits online.
During his campaign trail, Mr Cole-Hamilton revealed the Liberal Democrats aimed to “tear down the acid yellow wall of the SNP.” He claimed promises made by the SNP to improve dental care were empty, forcing some Ukrainian refugees to travel back to Kyiv rather than wait in battle with the Scottish NHS. The SNP previously promised to remove dental charges, with some procedures costing double the price in recent years. This has seen dentists depart the NHS due to the difficulty of cooperating with the SNP government.
The Liberal Democrats are not expected to form a post-election coalition with the Conservatives, citing their 2010 Cameron-Clegg coalition as an example of what not to do. Labour has not been ruled out as the Liberal Democrats join the UK campaign’s launch, pledging to increase GP recruitment rates by half to reach 8,000 physicians.
The Conservative party’s lack of regard for dental services is regarded as a “national scandal” by Ed Davey, the Liberal Democrat leader. He pledged support for ending the dental desert created by SNP and Conservative governments alike. Conversely, the SNP leader John Swinney is determined to “kick the Scottish Conservatives out” of every seat in the upcoming elections. He plans to showcase the negative impact of austerity and the cost of living crisis caused by Westminster.
Anas Sarwar, the Scottish Labour leader, will reveal his plans for green jobs during his campaign visit. Meanwhile, the Scottish Greens will unveil their full slate of candidates for the 4 July ballots. Their candidates recently announced include Iris Duane, aiming to become the first trans woman of colour elected to Westminster
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