Alan Milburn has been accused of creating a "phantom" flu epidemic three years ago to disguise NHS bed shortages.

In January 2000 the health service appeared to struggle with a flood of cases and the health secretary said: "We could be heading for the worst epidemic in the past decade."

However, an analysis in the British Medical Journal says: "A hospital beds crisis occurred in the winter of 1999-2000 but according to routine primary-care surveillance systems, the incidence of influenza-like illness did not reach epidemic proportions (as conventionally described)."