I sincerely thank Deputy Burke for raising this important matter concerning the Cork dental hospital and the availability of dental training places. As the Deputy said, he has raised this issue on a number of occasions and I have responded to him. The Government is firmly committed to ensuring our healthcare system is supported by a steady and sustainable pipeline of highly skilled graduates. My Department, in collaboration with the Department of Health, the Higher Education Authority, HEA, and the higher education institutions, plays a central role in delivering the education and training infrastructure needed to meet the evolving demands of the healthcare workforce, including in critical areas such as oral healthcare and dentistry. Ensuring adequate capacity to train future dentists is part of our broader commitment to workforce planning that supports the health and well-being of our population. With regard to the Deputy's specific question, the Department of Health has received a strong proposal from UCC requesting €4.7 million in capital funding to establish a dental outreach centre. This would enable training of an additional ten undergraduate dental students annually, particularly benefiting Irish and EU students. Currently, UCC admits 50 dentistry students annually, comprising 25 EU and 25 non-EU students. This initiative aligns with the national oral health policy by adopting a community-based model of dental education, which offers students earlier clinical exposure in real world primary care settings and that enhances their skills and readiness on graduation. While the proposal is promising, it currently delivers limited increases in domestic student places. There is a clear opportunity for both Departments to collaborate further to maximise investment and expand domestic training capacity to meet Ireland’s dental workforce needs. Discussions are currently ongoing between the Department of Health and my Department to try to progress this proposal with a view to maximising Irish and EU places to obtain value for money for this proposal. UCC is refurbishing its dental school and hospital at a cost of €15 million in total, co-funded by the Department of Health and UCC. We have established, as the Deputy said, new dentistry programmes, including one in the RCSI, which commenced in 2025 that will provide at least 20 new dentistry places. I re-affirm my Department's commitment to working with all relevant stakeholders to ensure any future expansion of dental education is grounded in evidence, responds to national needs and is delivered in a sustainable manner. However, I can assure the Deputy that his project is progressing.

Sentiment score: 0.41

I am sure at the committee meeting tomorrow the Deputy will have the opportunity to question the Department representatives. I am not here to defend its figures but I can quote them and I can say that we have increased by 33% the number of students commencing dentistry studies in 2025. That is factually correct. The Department of Health also tells me that we have had a steady increase in the number of registered dentists since 2016, from 2,949 to 3.945 today. The number of registered dentists per 1,000 of population has risen from 61 in 2019 to nearly 72 today. I understand we have to make more progress but those are the figures that have been supplied to me. I assure the Deputy we are committed to responding proactively to future workforce requirements. I made a special point today of speaking to officials in my Department because I recognise that this is an issue the Deputy has raised on many occasions and an issue to which he wants answers. I fully understand this. The officials from my Department have told me that the Higher Education Authority and University College Cork are meeting in the coming weeks to discuss the next stages of progressing the proposal in regard to the outreach centre. There are a number of issues they have to work out. Student training and student supervision were some of the issues mentioned to me. However, the Deputy should have an update in the near future.

Sentiment score: 0.24