Dental services at risk due to 'anti-migrant rhetoric'

The British Dental Association (BDA) has warned that healthcare is at risk of being undermined as dentists face ‘a sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric’.

Healthcare professionals from ‘international backgrounds, or perceived as ethnically distinct from the majority population, are facing a sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric’, it says.

And, together with seven other trade unions, it is demanding an end to the ‘escalating use of hostile language’ against people from overseas living in the UK, in a joint statement.

The statement, which has been backed by organisations including the British Medical Association, the Royal College of Nursing, the Society of Radiographers along with Unison, Unite, and the Hospital Consultants and Specialists Association, calls on politicians and the media to end the spread of misinformation which is resulting in the ‘blatant scapegoating of migrant communities’.

It says: “Our health and social care sector is built on the hard work and rich diversity of its workforce.

“Many of our colleagues, especially those from international backgrounds or perceived as ethnically distinct from the majority population, are facing a sustained campaign of anti-migrant rhetoric.

“This rhetoric also comes at a time when the rights of those who live and work in the UK to continue to make the UK their home are being openly questioned, including tens of thousands of people working within the health and social care sector.

“People are unsettled and frightened, with some directly experiencing hate and violence at work and within their communities.”

The statement adds: “In the face of this blatant scapegoating of migrant communities, we stand united in our commitment to uphold the values of dignity, respect, and equality for all individuals.

“As leading trade unions and professional associations within the UK, representing workers within the health and social care sector, we reject any form of discrimination and oppose all forms of racism and xenophobia.”

The publication of the unprecedented joint statement comes at a time of escalating hostile rhetoric towards migrants in the UK which has seen growing tension and a rise in acts of violence taking place.