Although 58,346 dental care professionals (DCPs) have renewed their registration with the General Dental Council (GDC), 4,012 DCPs did not and have now been removed from the register. The annual deadline to pay their retention fee of £120 passed on 31 July 2012.

Those erased consist of

• 3,423 dental nurses
• 163 hygienists
• 48 dental therapists
• 6 orthodontic therapists
• 416 dental technicians
• 4 clinical dental technicans

Lincolnshire solicitors Bridge McFarland claim that the demand for a perfect 'Hollywood smile' has led to a rise in medical negligence cases, costing Lincolnshire dentists £250,000. The firm's medical negligence specialist, Stephanie Lock, said that lack of NHS dentistry and the fact that more people were now paying for private treatment was also contributing to a rise in complaints.

In mid-2013 41,621 dental care professionals (DCPs) will come to the end of their first five year cycle of Continuing Professional Development (CPD). This means they must complete 150 hours of CPD by 31 July 2013 or risk losing their registration the General Dental Council (GDC) has warned. This deadline could prompt a rush of registrants signing up for courses and the GDC is taking this opportunity to alert CPD providers to the possibility of an increase in demand.

An EU Commission study has opened the way to phasing mercury out of dentistry. A new study recommends phasing out dental amalgam use in the next five years, while improving enforcement of existing EU waste legislation. The EU and member states will now consider this recommendation.