Last month, the Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing said that independent dentists were being encouraged to follow the spirit of the route map, but constituents tell me that it is still the case that those who can afford private dental care have access to a wide range of treatments that are unavailable to national health service patients.

Does the First Minister agree that private patients are not at less of a risk to themselves or to dental staff than NHS patients are? Will she therefore review her advice on dental health to ensure that people are not left suffering simply because they cannot afford to pay for private treatment?

In summary, yes. Since the public health Minister gave his answer, I think—if I have got the timing of that right—that there has been movement in what NHS dentists can offer by way of services. The use of aerosol-generating procedures for urgent care is now possible. There is a different relationship between dentists who deliver private care and the Scottish Government. The national clinical director, who has a dentistry background, has encouraged them to comply with the guidance that is set out for the dental profession, and the chief dental officer has worked very hard with the profession generally.

Our focus is on allowing people to access the fullest possible range of dental services on the NHS as quickly and as soon as it is safely possible for them to do so. Throughout the pandemic, a number of emergency centres across the country have provided people with access to urgent and emergency care.

If I have not covered every aspect of the question in my answer, I will ask the public health minister to write to Elaine Smith with a fuller update on what is now possible and what we hope to make possible in the coming weeks.