The figures, from the Office of Health Economics (OHE), also show that Britain spends less on health care than any other developed nation.

Total expenditure in Britain is �946 per head of population every year compared to �1,500 per head in Germany. In England, the figure is just �741 a head.

According to the OHE figures, Britain lags so far behind Europe on heart deaths, that even if the government meets its target to boost survival rates, Britons would still be at greater risk of dying than other European nationals.

Scotland is a blackspot

England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland all rank among the ten worst nations for early heart deaths.

Scotland is top of the league for heart fatality rates, with more than 300 deaths of men aged between 45 and 64 out of every 100,000 due to coronary heart disease.

Ireland and Northern Ireland are next on the list, both on around 300 male deaths per 100,000, with England and Wales coming in at just under 250 male deaths out of every 100,000 due to coronary heart disease.

The comparable figure for Japan is less than 50 and Italy, Spain and France are all also under the 150 mark.

A Department of Health spokeswoman said: "This survey was taken in 1995.

"Since then we have published our white paper, which sets out in detail action we are taking to cut the number of deaths from coronary heart disease and strokes.

"We aim to reduce the number of people under 75 dying from the disease by 40% by the year 2010."

Dr John Chisholm, chairman of the British Medical Association's GP Committee, said the figrues were "horrifying but not unexpected".

He said: "They prove yet again that the NHS is woefully underfunded in comparison with almost all other health care systems in the developed world.

"The BMA has for years been making out the case for more funding."

A spokesman for the British Heart Foundation (BHF) said death rates from coronary heart disease had been falling in Britain since 1979.

But he said the problem was now concentrated among socially disadvantaged groups.

He said: "The challenge is to get prevention messages across and to make treatment available to all so that people in certain groups do not have to shoulder the burden of this problem."