Global health leaders have urged parents to get their children vaccinated against measles as they warn there is now an “epidemic” of the highly infectious disease.

The World Health Organisation (WHO) raised concerns that a dip in vaccination uptake during the Covid-19 pandemic could be behind the rise in measles cases, compared to what would usually be expected in the first two months of the year.

Problems accessing care and questions over vaccination which arose during the pandemic could have led to fewer people getting the jab, WHO suggested.