Theresa May will face Jeremy Corbyn for the first Prime Minister's Questions of the year

Theresa May was accused of being "too weak" to sack her Health Secretary as warnings over the NHS winter crisis dominated the first Prime Minister's Questions of the year.

Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn focused all six of his questions on challenges in the health service, after hospitals were told to defer around 55,000 routine operations and potentially millions of outpatient appointments to free up capacity for the sickest patients.

He also mocked Ms May for failing to get rid of Jeremy Hunt, the Health Secretary, who was widely thought to be in line for a move during the reshuffle but kept his job, and expanded his remit, after reportedly refusing to budge.

The two-day reshuffle - aimed at ridding her top team of its “pale, male and stale” image - saw a raft of new MPs promoted to junior ministerial positions. However Ms May’s efforts to shake up the top tier stalled when senior ministers, including Mr Hunt and Justine Greening, until then the Education Secretary, declined other jobs.

MPs also debated opposition day motions on the NHS and the railways, while Labour’s motion demanding that the Government releases extra cash to combat the crisis passed in the Commons without a vote.