To ask the Secretary of State for Health what estimate he has made of the numbers of (a) doctors and (b) dentists who the NHS requires to be (i) recruited and (ii) trained in each of the next three years; and what percentage of (A) doctors and (B) dentists are expected to graduate from (1) medical schools and (2) dental schools in the UK in each of those years. (165560)

The numbers of doctors and dentists who the national health service requires to be recruited each year is a matter for determination by local NHS organisations, as they are best placed to assess the health needs of their local health community.

There is a planned intake of 6,194 students to train as doctors in each of the next three years. However the actual intake figure is usually slightly higher.

There is a planned intake of 899 students to train as dentists in each of the next three years.

It is estimated that in each of the three academic years from 2007-08 there is expected to be 5,681, 5,818 and 5,874 graduates respectively from medical schools while the number of graduates from English dental schools will increase from around 640 to 860.