Sir, we recently noticed that the UK Government adopted a policy to recruit medical doctors of European origin only. This was condemned by the British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (BAPIO). It is a notable fact that there are thousands of dentists from developing countries, including India, who aspire to obtaining a practising licence in the UK so as to have a better quality of life, many of them taking out huge loans to pay for the International Qualifying Examination (IQE) and also paying travel expenses to the UK hoping to pass the exams and obtain employment. Just over a year ago there was a shortage of dentists in the UK and foreign trained dentists were needed to fill the vacancies in the UK. Many distinguished staff from the UK trained Indian dentists to take the IQE. It is a sad fact that these dentists, after investing huge sums of money, do not know what the future holds for them in the UK as there is no place for them in the NHS. Opportunities in private practice are also very bleak as dentists need to undergo vocational training prior to seeking employment. The few vacancies that are available for vocational training are filled by dental graduates from the UK or the EU.

There are approximately 2,500 dentists in India who have registered or are preparing to take various parts of the IQE. These dentists are now totally disillusioned and do not know what to do or where they stand! It would be very kind if the UK Government were to reconsider its stringent policy as it could be a life saver for dentists who have already taken or who are in the process of taking the IQE. Indian doctors and dentists have been serving in the UK for a long time and have made great contributions to the industry; they would continue to do so if the doors to the UK are kept open and they are not asked to return to India.

(This author wishes to point out that he was also the author of Preventing a dropout [BDJ 2007; 202: 176–177] in which his name was given as just 'M. Bhat'.)