BURNLEY MP Peter Pike today welcomed the news that the Department of Health is to fund two salaried dentists to serve Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale after declaring the current situation is "terrible".

The news follows a successful bid by the East Lancashire Public Health Network for £163,602 to provide NHS dental care.

One dentist is likely to be based at St Nicholas's Health Centre in Burnley with the other vacancy yet to be determined. Mr Pike said: "I am delighted to hear that the joint work that I, the East Lancashire Public Health Network, and Burnley, Pendle and Rossendale Primary Care Trust have been doing to address the shortage of NHS dental provision in Burnley is seeing some good results.

"The situation in Burnley has been terrible, and I have raised the issue countless times - both during Health questions in the House of Commons and in correspondence with the relevant Ministers. Access to dental care is vital for all sections of our communities, but the lack of NHS dental care provision has led to a dramatic fall in numbers of people going for regular dental check-ups.

"I regularly receive correspondence from constituents who are concerned about this and have, in the past, received somewhat unsatisfactory responses when I have represented their cases. Those who have been in correspondence with me on this matter will be delighted to learn that some of their comments were incorporated in the bid for this funding and have therefore directly contributed to helping secure this money."

Health bosses said the shortage has been heightened by practices going private, claiming demand and lack of cash was affecting their ability to treat patients.