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There can be few people that will dispute the perception that bad times go by very slowly while good times race past. I find it difficult to believe that it was more than a year ago since I was being installed as your President in Manchester in May 2008. The last twelve months have passed by so quickly that you can all be assured that I have had a very, very good time as your President.

You don't become President of an organisation like the British Dental Association without knowing a considerable amount about the Association and its membership. However, by the end of your Presidency you know considerably more than when you started. The visits to Groups, Branches and Sections throughout the United Kingdom have given me much more insight into the activities and needs of the membership. Travel to the United States of America, Sweden, Australia, Canada and Ireland has shown me that British dentistry, the British dental profession and the British Dental Association are highly respected throughout the world.

Much has changed in the last twelve months and we sometimes need to remind ourselves that this time last year we were facing a future of economic certainty with increasing prosperity through unremitting economic growth – there was not a cloud in the sky. But then the economic bubble burst, financial credit dried up, financial institutions, banks and insurance companies that seemed to have been around for generations collapsed and disappeared overnight. There cannot be anyone at this Conference who has not been affected in some way by this turmoil. Compared to many we remain lucky that we provide a healthcare service that is necessary both in the good times and the bad times. But our patients are often less fortunate and many have to now make their purchasing decisions against a background of reduced income or unemployment. Their lifestyle aspirations of whiter teeth and a more beautiful smile may need to be postponed until they have more financial security. However, they still need oral healthcare and we have a responsibility to treat them with consideration. Dentistry is not immune from economic disaster but it is resistant to the financial crisis.

Despite this our Association moves forward and grows in stature, embracing the changing needs of the members. The Executive Board has started to look at a new BDA mission and vision statement with a new set of underpinning themes. This will produce a new set of organisational priorities and new challenges that will guide the Association well into the second decade of the 21st century. Only by implementing relevant change can the BDA adequately serve its membership from recruitment through to retirement while still retaining its reputation as a world authority on dentistry. The future looks very exciting and we have a talented group of elected officers supported by skilled professional staff available to take that change forward for the future of the dental profession, whatever the latest crisis may be.

Being President of the British Dental Association has been a privilege and an honour that I never expected in my dental career. I am extremely grateful for that honour and I don't really know how to demonstrate my gratitude to the membership other than to say thank you. Carrying out the duties of President has been an exercise that has required the help and support of a whole team of people, from my wife Sally and my children to other officers of the Association and the staff in all the offices of the BDA. I am extremely grateful to them all.

I am very proud to pass on the Presidency to an old friend and colleague John Drummond. John and I worked closely together when the BDA had its own economic crisis and there is nothing like adversity for throwing colleagues together and learning about each other. I know that John, who is a respected dental academic and teacher, will make an outstanding President of the Association. John, I wish you the very best of health, fortune and luck as you start your Office and I do hope that you enjoy your year as President of this Association as much as I have enjoyed mine.