It is believed that taking ibuprofen may increase the chances of contracting coronavirus.

People have been advised to avoid ibuprofen "at the moment", the Government's chief scientific adviser has suggested.

The comments from Sir Patrick Vallance appear to be at odds with information issued yesterday by Public Health England (PHE).

The use of the drug in connection with Covid-19 has come into question in recent days after French health minister Olivier Veran suggested that anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen, could worsen the infection.

Speaking at the Health Select Committee, Sir Patrick told MPs: "The ibuprofen example - it may or may not be right, I don't know - but the sensible thing to do would be to say don't take it at the moment, take something else - paracetamol or something."

But yesterday PHE said there is not enough information on ibuprofen use and Covid-19 to advise people to stop using ibuprofen.

PHE said there was no published scientific evidence that ibuprofen increases the risk of catching Covid-19 or makes the illness worse.

It said: "Most people with Covid-19 will have a mild illness and some people may need to take medicines, such as paracetamol or ibuprofen, to help with raised temperature, headache and other pains; always follow the instructions on the label if you do take these medicines and do not exceed the stated dose