The deaths in the West Yorkshire town were confirmed today by officials from NHS Kirklees.

The girl who died, Asmaa Hussain, nine, from Scout Hill, Dewsbury, had epilepsy.

It is the second tragedy to hit the family. Her father died two months ago.

The man who died was 42 and lived in the Savile Town area of Dewsbury. He was from a South Asian background. It is believed he suffered from lung and kidney problems.

It is believed that the man was a teacher at the Institute of Islamic Education, a private boarding school in Savile Town, Dewsbury, although NHS Kirklees officials would not comment on this.

The coroner has been informed of both deaths.

The Yorkshire Post understands that there will not be an inquest into the man's death as the coroner has decided that he died from natural causes, although the exact cause of his death has not been publicly released.

A post mortem examination on the girl is expected to be conducted later this week.

A spokesman for the Department of Health said that if the deaths are confirmed as swine flu they will be the sixth and seventh confirmed deaths in the UK.

A spokesperson for NHS Kirklees said: "We can confirm that a child from the Kirklees area, who had swine flu, has died. The child also had serious underlying health issues.

"At this stage, we have no confirmation whether or not swine flu was the cause of death."