NON-urgent operations at Basildon and Thurrock Hopsital are reported to have been halted as Covid-19 has put increasing pressure on its capacity to cope.

Basildon & Thurrock, together with Southend Hospital and Chelmsford's Broomfield Hospital are run by the Mid and South Essex NHS Foundation Trust.

It is understood staff at all three have been told by the trust that the number of Covid patients has "increased markedly, putting severe pressure on emergency departments" so to compensate non-urgent activity has been halted in a bid to "keep the hospitals safe."

The trust has confirmed "some non-urgent operations have been postponed, and surgery will continue to be prioritised based on clinical need" but it is now reported by the BBC that prioritization has turned into cancellation in many cases.

In the email, seen by the BBC, staff were told that were "more cases than in wave one".

The message said staff "will need to encourage early discharge and also admission avoidance where possible" and doctors and nurses' working patterns and job plans will have to change temporarily to care for Covid patients.

The Trust has been asked to comment.