Ineos begins delivering up to a million bottles of hand sanitiser from Newton Aycliffe plant

The chemicals firm Ineos has begun distributing hand sanitiser to the NHS from its manufacturing plant in County Durham.

Ineos announced it would build a manufacturing plant in Newton Aycliffe and begin delivering up to a million bottles for free to the health service.

The site was set up in ten days and will produce hand sanitiser to World Health Organisation (WHO) standards.

Bottles ranging in size from 50ml to five litres will be sent to 28 hospitals around the country including the James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough.

Ineos founder and chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe said: "We believe these sanitisers will play a key part in the fight against the virus, helping protect our NHS frontline staff and vulnerable people across the country."-

Sir Dave Brailsford, the head of team Ineos' cycling team, is said to have assisted with the logistics and distribution planning.

He said: "We move a lot of equipment around the world - people, bikes, nutrition products and vehicles.

"We have a great logistics team who are constantly doing the operations for the team.

"I think those skills stood us in good stead and have been quite transferable in this situation, to be able to support as best we can."