A deadly French flu epidemic could be heading for the UK - prompting health bosses to warn NHS workers to have flu jabs.

Officials are urging NHS staff to have the jab as figures show as few as one in three workers have been vaccinated at some hospitals.

The warnings have emerged as the deadly French flu reached epidemic levels across the channel.

According to the Sunday Telegraph, NHS trusts are failing to get medical workers to have flu jabs amid the warnings that the French epidemic could spread to Britain.

The paper reports: “It comes amid a deepening NHS winter crisis, with 24 hospital trusts declaring ‘black alerts’ last week, as pressures threatened to overwhelm them, and thousands of patients stuck in ambulances outside hospitals as flu rates soar.”

It has been reported that around one quarter of NHS staff will contract flu during an average winter period.

The Sunday Telegraph reports that figures suggest around half will not show symptoms, which means they could remain in work and spread infections.

Source: CoventryTelegraph