Boris Johnson's cash injection to help the health service recover from the Covid pandemic is welcome but a longer-term funding plan is needed, NHS leaders have said.

The prime minister announced on Monday that an additional £5.4bn will be given to the NHS over the next six months.

It will be used to clear waiting lists, improve infection control measures and increase capacity in surgery theatres.

Matthew Taylor, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, and Saffron Cordery, deputy chief executive of NHS Providers, said £10bn would still be needed on an annual basis for the next three years to avoid patient services being cut.

“This isn’t a short-term fix – we are looking at five to seven years to clear the backlog,” they added in a statement.

Elsewhere, figures published on Tuesday show Covid deaths jumped at the end of August.

According to the Office for National Statistics, there was a total of 668 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending August 27 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics.

The figure was up 17 per cent on the previous week and represents a five-month high.