The NHS is creaking under the strain of a flu outbreak but the one across the Channel has been worse

A French hospital has invited NHS patients whose operations have been cancelled because of winter overcrowding to be treated free in Calais.

Despite a flu outbreak even worse than the one in Britain, France has said it has plenty of space for British patients for routine surgery paid for by the NHS.

As NHS hospitals warn that people are dying on corridors, and abandon a three-month waiting time target for routine operations, Calais Hospital is trying to tempt Britons with private rooms, en suite bathrooms, free parking, English-speaking staff, wi-fi and waits of less than a month.

Under a deal struck in 2015, patients can opt for surgery in France and the NHS in Kent will pay standard rates to Calais Hospital. The hospital can