Coronavirus: Bath dentist offers to sell surplus facemasks for £50

The dental surgery has offered local people a chance to buy masks

A dentist has been criticised for selling surplus facemasks for £50 each.

Toby Talbot, from the privately-run Talbot Clinic in Bath, has written to people living nearby to offer them a chance to buy FFP3 masks.

Bath's Liberal Democrat MP Wera Hobhouse said it was "disappointing" and any surplus equipment should be given to front-line NHS staff.

Mr Talbot has been asked for a comment. He failed to respond to an email and repeated calls over several days.

The BBC has been unable to establish exactly which kind of masks he is offering for sale or what price they would normally be sold for.

In a letter sent to residents, Mr Talbot said the availability of FFP3 masks to the general public "will be severely rationed".

"As a provider of healthcare services in Bath, we will be receiving a supply of FFP3 face masks next week," the letter said.

The letter was sent to people living nearby

It added: "After we have supplied healthcare staff, we will have a surplus to offer our immediate neighbours who need to venture outdoors.

"We would like to offer our neighbours the opportunity to have these masks for their own personal protection as well as members of the household, at £50 per mask."

FFP3 respirator masks are generally considered by experts to offer the most amount of protection against coronavirus because of their effective filters.

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Ms Hobhouse said: "It is very disappointing to see a private company selling masks to neighbouring households within our community when we know there is an ongoing shortage of PPE for key workers.

"I would encourage any company that finds themselves with a surplus of this equipment to donate it to front-line staff so that they can be fully protected as they are exposed to the virus."

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