A spokeswoman for University College Hospital, London, said: "She had plastic surgery to her face on Friday and recovered well from the anaesthetic.

"She remains in intensive care but her condition is stable and she is improving."

Ms McDonald received serious head injuries in the accident in Clerkenwell, north London.

One of the UK's foremost broadcast journalists, the 44-year-old has presented Channel 4 News and the Right To Reply programme in addition to working for BBC television.

She also writes regularly for the Guardian newspaper and the New Statesman magazine.

Wrong side of the road

Police on Sunday refused to comment on reports that the police van was travelling on the wrong side of the road.

It was claimed that it pulled out and overtook a line of stationary cars queued at a red traffic light on its way to answer an emergency call.

The van, which had its blue light flashing, was on its way to a reported fight in Holloway Road when it hit Ms McDonald in St John's Street, Clerkenwell, at 2347 GMT on 26 February.

A Scotland Yard spokeswoman said: "We are not prepared to discuss the exact circumstances of the accident while it is still being investigated."

Police said last week that the driver, a 27-year-old police constable, had been suspended from driving duty and an investigation launched as a matter of routine.