NHS Trusts are buying whiteboard markers at near double the price of high street shops, new figures reveal.

Last year packs of four whiteboard markers were bough for between £1.32 and £2.10, the exclusive data obtained by The Telegraph reveals, despite similar items being available for just £1.25 from office supplier Staples.

Such discrepancies have been described as "baffling" by Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt.

The health service spends £55.6 billion each year on general supplies and medical equipment, however bulk buying is not resulting in the best deals, as the new figures reveal.

The cost to NHS trusts of identical packets of 30 bed pads ranged from £2.45 and £4.42 – a difference of 80 per cent.

Yet similar packets are readily available online from just £3.89, 12 per cent less than the top price trusts are paying.