The Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital will be given support over the winter if junior doctors go on strike, a health minister has said.

Norwich MP Chloe Smith quizzed health ministers in the House of Commons today on what support would be in place after the Norfolk hospital had already declared a black alert.

A leaked email from a senior figure earlier this month described the 'critical situation' at the Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital (N&N).

It said demand had seen the hospital 'full to a level that is absolutely without precedent', and a spokesman subsequently confirmed the hospital was on black alert for 24 hours with a 'small number' of stable patients placed in beds in accident and emergency while the appropriate speciality beds became available.

Health minister Ben Gummer told Ms Smith in the House of Commons that they were preparing for the winter with an 'unprecedented scale learning from the experience from last winter'.

He said there was already specific support already provided to the N&N hospital and 'consistent' support was going to be provided through the winter to ensure they dealt with the additional challenges being 'thrown the way of hospitals throughout the country by the junior doctors in the industrial action they are taking'.