A review into the deaths and injuries of babies at a scandal-hit NHS maternity unit is now looking at more than 100 cases, it is understood.

In January 2017 Jeremy Hunt, then the health secretary, ordered an independent inquiry led by Donna Ockenden, a senior midwife, to examine 23 cases of mother and baby deaths and injuries at hospitals in Shropshire.

It is now believed that the review into Shrewsbury and Telford NHS Trust (SaTH) is examining cases involving up to 104 families, according to the BBC.

Meanwhile, the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has taken urgent action against the maternity department.

The extent of alleged malpractice between 1998 and 2017 threatens a scandal bigger than that of Morecambe Bay, which saw the avoidable deaths of 11 babies and one mother.

Now the team being led by Ms Ockenden is looking into allegations that some babies born at the trust between 2000 and 2017 suffered avoidable harm due to errors by maternity staff.