Hospitals in Britain are facing a “worst case scenario” from a wave of super flu, healthcare bosses warned on Thursday, as flu hospitalisations jumped 55% in a week.

Health leaders have told people who feel ill to wear face masks when using public transport, while some hospitals are requiring masks, and more people are being urged to book a flu jab as the virus sweeps through the country.

NHS England said that an average of 2,660 patients were in a hospital bed with flu last week, the highest ever level for this time of year, up more than half in a week, in what it described as an “unprecedented wave of super flu”.

However, Keir Starmer, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, urges the BMA to ‘accept the offer on the table’ and ‘do the responsible thing’ amid a surge in flu hospitalisations.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said last month that detections were rising “much earlier than usual” and urged vulnerable groups to get vaccinated “without delay.”