Biting back with Arthur Dent
Devolution or independence?
T
he recent confer- ence of Local Dental Committees (LDCs) in Scotland, held at the end of April, seems to
have been particularly eventful. In the week leading up to the
conference we learned that the majority of members of Greater Glasgow & Clyde (GG&C) LDC had resigned en masse from the British Dental Association (BDA) citing dissatisfaction with the running of the association, and in particular, many decisions made by the Principal Executive Committee (PEC), especially in relation to the new membership structure and to support for staff and committees in Scotland. Although the BDA has no formal
links with LDCs, many GDPs sit on their LDC and on BDA commit- tees. Furthermore, BDA Scotland has until now provided the Scottish LDC conference with administra- tive support.
At the dinner the evening before
the Scottish LDC Conference, I understand that the chair of the PEC, Mick Armstrong, made a point of seeking and talking to some of the disgruntled LDC members and chose to sit with them during dinner. It seems Mick certainly did not shirk discussing the issues, joining delegates at the bar after- wards and chatting into the small hours.
During the conference, two
motions which implied dissat- isfaction with the BDA were proposed and carried by a signifi- cant majority. One, proposed by GG&C LDC stated: “Due to the current dissatisfaction in Scotland with the performance of the BDA in London, this conference calls for the establishment of a new Scottish-based body to represent and negotiate on behalf of Scottish GDPs.” The second, proposed by Ayrshire & Arran LDC, was even
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“We learned that the majority of members of Greater Glasgow & Clyde LDC had resigned en masse from the BDA”
more specific: “We ask this confer- ence to set up a working group to proceed with the formation of a Scot- tish Association of LDCs.” As a result, the conference has
now established a working group to pursue the mandate of this second motion. It consists of representatives of LDCs and other interested parties, including the BDA. Presumably the concept of a Scot-
tish Association of LDCs will be either to maintain pressure on the BDA or to break away completely? The majority of BDA membership
renewals are due in June and it remains to be seen how many dentists will continue membership. Whispers are circulating that the BDA will offer more autonomy to BDA Scotland and its committees, but these appear to be merely rumours. The BDA needs to act quickly to show its commitment to Scotland especially in light of the forthcoming independence referendum.
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