Tony Blair admitted yesterday that his promise to provide NHS dentists for everyone by 2001 had not been fulfilled.

At prime ministers questions he said: "I accept that there are still people who aren't getting access to NHS dentists. There are long-term issues, however, associated with dentistry that we have to look at."

Only around 18 million people in the UK are currently registered with an NHS dentist, compared with 25 million in 1994.