Memories can be such troublesome things, cast your mind back to 2005. There were pilots in the form of PDS contracts and there was work on drafting of a new contract together with the reorganisation of PCTs. All were all in the mix ahead of April 2006.

When I was young I would often travel to Southern Ireland with my parents to visit relatives and the stories of road signs in Eire are indeed true. They rarely have reliability and when you stop a local farmer for directions they really do say,” I wouldn’t be starting from here! "

If you were planning to create a new contract for NHS Dentistry would you choose to do it at the same time as the NHS is about to undergo revolution following the “Liberating the NHS” White Paper. Sadly we appear to have no choice as the coalition seems committed to tearing up the contracts of 2006, matching a time line to exterminate PCTs and develop a National Commissioning Board. Is this the perfect storm?

Lord Howe is set next month to announce the details of the Pilots arising out of the Steele Review. Following the collaborative work of the DoH and GDPC and others, the Minister has taken the summer to analyse the work that started in the dying days of the previous administration. This work has been finalised and presented to the Minister, together with civil service advice decisions will be made on numbers and pilot options. Presumably, if there is no need for legislative changes and the timetable is not delayed, they are due to start in April next year.

To be significant these pilots must at least run for 18 months which flow into the jurisdiction of a National Commissioning Board, which starts in shadow form from the expected start date of the pilots.