TONY Blair admitted yesterday he had broken his pledge to give everyone an NHS dentist, as figures revealed mounting problems in the North-East and North Yorkshire.

The Prime Minister acknowledged for the first time that a promise that no-one would be forced to go private - after 2001 - had not been met.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Blair said: "I accept there are people who still aren't getting access to NHS dentists."

Until now, the prime minister has insisted patients unable to register with a local dentist would be able to get NHS treatment by ringing the free helpline, NHS Direct.

Mr Blair made his comments as the Liberal Democrats published figures revealing that registration had declined sharply across the North-East and North Yorkshire.

Only 53 per cent of adults and 63 per cent of children in County Durham and Tees Valley were registered last year, compared to 59 per cent and 70 per cent respectively back in 1997.

Northumberland and Tyne and Wear (51 per cent and 61 per cent, compared to 56 per cent and 68 per cent) and North and East Yorkshire (38 per cent and 55 per cent, compared to 52 per cent and 69 per cent) also showed big falls.

It means that up to 62 per cent of adults in some areas are only able to get NHS treatment through NHS Direct - a massive strain on the helpline.

A spokeswoman for the British Dental Association said: "It would be very wrong if the Prime Minister was to suggest that everyone had access. We get people telling us that they have rung NHS Direct and been told that the nearest NHS dentist to them is 60 miles away."

It was in 1999 that Mr Blair made his celebrated pledge to restore NHS dentistry, after savage Conservative cuts in fees sparked an exodus into private practice.