Hospitals in England are being attacked for their high car-parking charges, usually 60% higher than those paid to councils by shoppers. Hospital parking is free in Scotland and Wales.

Charity Age UK warns that older people and their families rely on their cars to attend hospitals and say that charges should not be an unreasonable barrier to getting treatment.

Many hospitals with expensive car parks – and charges can reach £3 per hour – claim that the high profits are invested in patient services, rather than high management salaries or pensions. To see how caring your own local hospital is visit www.telegraph.co.uk/health