A 12-YEAR-OLD girl was one of three people confirmed with swine flu in England last night, as the Government stepped up a campaign to prevent the spread of the virus.

The girl, from Torbay, in Devon, a 41-year-old woman from Redditch, Worcestershire, and a 22-year-old man from north west London, all contracted the disease after recent visits to Mexico.

Britain’s first confirmed victims, Iain and Dawn Askham, of Polmont, near Falkirk, were still being treated in hospital yesterday, after falling ill on their return from honeymoon.

The girl was on the same flight back to the UK as the newlyweds.

Health Secretary Alan Johnson said a public health campaign will start today, with newspapers, television and radio carrying adverts warning people about swine flu.

Stockpiles of anti-viral drugs, currently enough to cover 33m people, are being increased to provide for 50m people.

Surgical masks with respirators will be produced for frontline NHS staff.

Merseyside businesses and organisations are stocking up on masks to prevent the virus spreading.

Ben Ludzker, managing director of Kays Medical, based on Shaw Street, Liverpool, says hundreds of thousands of masks have been ordered: “It has been so busy, we have been taking orders for thousands of masks.

“We deal mostly with companies, who obviously need large numbers.

“At the stage we are at, businesses should be prepared to implement pandemic procedures, but most have thought about getting supplies until now.