SEVENTEEN dentists had gross earnings of more than £500,000 from the NHS last year at a time of growing cost pressures on the health service, and two dental practitioners clawed back more than £1 million in taxpayers' money for services provided to the public.
Many dentists concentrate on private patients, but others get reimbursed for work covered by the NHS.
Under freedom of information legislation, an NHS quango was asked for details of the top 100-earning dentists in Scotland for 2013-14.
Top of the list was Samir Sayegh, whose NHS dental services in the Lothians and Fife landed him more than £1.2m. The lowest NHS earner in this category was Alexander Hamilton, who received £286,578 for work in Bellshill and Hamilton.
Also at the top of the list were George Campbell, who was reimbursed for work in six establishments in Glasgow, Lanarkshire and Greenock and earned around £1.1m, and Simon Miller, based at Glasgow Orthodontics, who was listed as receiving £948,869.
Yassir Aljubouri earned £851,119 for NHS dentistry, while Ruaridh McKelvey received £807,659 for work carried out in the Beam Orthodontics practice in Dundee.
Other dentists in the top 10 included Navin Aziz, Robert Irvine and Rami Sarraf.
Of the top 20 highest earners, 16 were paid for work in multiple practices.
However, the figures are gross rather than net, and the money is not just for an individual's salary, but is also used to pay for the running of dental practices.
These practice costs can include property rental and non-domestic rates, plus vocational training, maternity pay and commitment payments.
In the previous financial year, 2012-13, the top earner received £2.1m and the second highest-paid dentist received £1.3m.
Liberal Democrat MSP Jim Hume said: "NHS dentists are a hugely important part of our health service, but as with any other area of public spending we must ensure that the taxpayer is getting value for money.
"Dentists are highly skilled professionals. It is absolutely right they are paid fairly for their work, but ministers should not be asking us to sign blank cheques.
"There are some substantial sums of money being paid out. It is important we are clear where it is going and what it is for."
A spokesperson for the British Dental Association said: "These figures include the money practitioners need to set aside for staffing, premises and equipment. They don't reflect the reality of life on frontline of dentistry in Scotland.
"Dentists in Scotland are feeling the squeeze. Average incomes are now £68,000, down 25% since 2009. This leaves Scottish dentists the lowest earners in the UK."
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