UK hospitals and care homes would be prioritised in the event of the country running out of gas, according to reports.

While the government has branded the suggestion that this could happen as 'scaremongering', emergency plans would be in place if the unthinkable happened, according to the i newspaper.

Depending on how bad things get, businesses may see their gas supply cut - large industrial and commercial users, such as power plants, would have their gas supply restricted first, according to reports.

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Hospitals and care homes would understandably be priority number one, but could ultimately see their supply reduced.

According to some reports, a £30 fuel limit may be imposed by individual petrol stations during periods of panic buying or supply shortages to manage demand and prevent pumps from running dry. It is not a permanent, nationwide law.

As reported by Regit, asked whether the government was considering implementing fuel rationing, Labour MP Dan Tomlinson said: "At the moment, it is too early to tell what the impact of this crisis will be in the coming months.

"What we have seen in the last two weeks is that there has been a sharp increase in the cost of oil used to heat people's homes, and the Government has stepped in and said we're going to provide £50 million of support for people across the UK who are reliant on heating oil.

"We will monitor the situation, and we'll monitor it carefully."

Concerns are mounting as the conflict in the Middle East continues.

Iran has blocked the critical Strait of Hormuz supply route, through which around one fifth of globally traded oil passes, and energy infrastructure across the region has been targeted amid the ongoing conflict.

As of Wednesday, March 25, the United States has reportedly sent a 15-point plan to Iran for a possible ceasefire, an official said.

The US military has began to move paratroopers to the Mideast to back up a contingent of Marines.

Iran's attacks on regional energy infrastructure and its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, a strategic waterway through which a fifth of the world's oil is usually shipped, has sent oil prices skyrocketing and rocked world markets over fears of a global energy crisis.