A Devon hospital says it will need extra money from the government if Ministry of Defence (MoD) staff who work there are called up to participate in any conflict with Iraq.

Derriford Hospital in Plymouth is one of six across the country with military personnel working on its wards.

If war breaks out, it will have to find short-notice replacements for up to 180 MoD staff.

The hospital says it is also concerned that having to find other staff will add to its money problems.

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The hospital has already had to cancel non-urgent operations when MoD staff went on military exercises last week.

Hernia and varicose vein treatments were among those that were postponed.

The board of Plymouth Hospitals Trust is being informed that it had a shortfall of more than �5.5m up to November last year.

Locum and agency cover is partly to blame for the overspend.

However, the hospital has said it has been trying to reduce that by taking nursing staff away from administrative duties where possible so they can spend more time with patients.