In an open letter to Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson and Health and Social Care Secretary Wes Streeting, dentist leaders have spelled out that with average earnings at £65,000, young dentists – who already graduate with among the highest level of debt in the UK – face a perfect storm, paying the maximum interest rate but not earning enough to pay it off quickly. These dedicated health professionals will be left paying 9% of most of their incomes for 30 years.
The BDA estimates that with an average debt of £52,000 a dental graduate in 2017 will repay double what was borrowed. Ultimately, many will be left writing off unpaid debt of over £100,000.
The professional body stresses that reform of repayment thresholds, rather than just interest rates, is the only way to make a material difference to a typical dentist’s debt repayments.