The General Dental Council (GDC) has confirmed that the Annual Retention Fee (ARF) for 2026 will rise to £698 for dentists and £108 for dental care professionals (DCPs), as part of the regulator‘s new three-year strategic plan.
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A growing body of research continues to underscore the relationship between oral health and systemic disease. A recent study published on October 22, 2025, in Neurology® Open Access, the peer-reviewed journal of the American Academy of Neurology, adds further weight to this discussion.
Read more: Linking Oral Disease Burden and Stroke Risk: New Evidence
Sir Julian Hartley has resigned with immediate effect as Chief Executive of the CQC. This is due to his links with Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust, which is the subject of an independent inquiry into maternity and neonatal services. He had only taken over at the CQC in January 2025, and was intended to represent a fresh start there. His departure after less than 12 months is another blow to the troubled regulator.
A newly published study into AI speech tools in dentistry has determined that they could revolutionise dental record-keeping, but added that caution is needed.
Read more: Research Urges Caution on use of AI Dental Record Keeping
Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to announce a new £2 billion tax measure targeting self employed, high-earning, professionals in partnership accounting structures, including those operating through limited liability partnerships (LLPs). The reform aims to narrow the tax gap between self-employed partners and employed professionals, including those in dentistry who operate under partnership structures.
GDP‘s have not heard much from former CDO England Sara Hurley CBE, lately. That is not because she has restricted her ambitions to the University of Suffolk dental CIC or surrey Heartlands ICS. Her advocacy for radical change to how primary dental care is delivered in the UK continues unabated, but is now directed at a different audience.
Read more: Former CDO: Influencing the Shape of UK Dental Care
The debate around the aetiology of abfraction cavities may not be new, but it can now be argued with evidence going back to Neanderthal times.
Read more: Fossil 'Toothpick Grooves' may not be from Cleaning
The Treasury is consulting on plans to tighten the Soft Drinks Industry Levy by lowering the starting threshold from 5g to 4g of sugar per 100ml — a move that could significantly affect major brands such as Ribena and Lucozade.
Read more: Proposed Sugar Levy Changes Will Ensure Reformulation of Soft Drinks
Large scale GDPR breaches have involved companies such as British Airways, Marriot, Google and H & M. They received significant fines and in some cases were subject to separate actions by those affected as well as reputational damage. It is not just household names that are vulnerable.