Shivering Scots will suffer a winter blast of snow and ice later today, say forecasters.
The Met Office has issued a snow and ice yellow weather warning for most parts of the country including the Lothians, Strathclyde, Grampian, Tayside and Fife.
The warning is in place from about 6pm this evening until 10am on Tuesday, December 29.
Scots can expect icy surfaces with a "little snow" in places. It comes after Storm Bella battered large parts of the country.
A yellow weather warning has been issued (Image: Met Office)
A Met Office statement warned: "Some injuries from slips and falls on icy surface.
"Probably some icy patches on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths."
Scots are advised to clear any paths and driveways to avoid any mishaps.
Forecasters confirmed some areas affected by the cold snap will see one to three centimetres of snow with more on higher ground.
Residents living in areas affected by the cold weather have been warned about disruptions to travel and a higher risk of accidents happening due to the icy conditions.
A Met Office statement said: “Some roads and railways likely to be affected meaning longer journey times.
"Icy patches likely on some untreated roads, pavements and cycle paths, leading to increased likelihood of accidents and injuries.”
Hospitals are under such pressure from an influx of people with coronavirus that some patients are being treated in ambulances - and one medical expert has warned the vaccine rollout could take until December next year.
The number of people being admitted to hospital is nearing the level of the first peak in April and the problem could continue to get worse through January and February, it has been warned.
One ambulance service has reported that Boxing Day was one of its busiest ever days.
Dr Adrian Boyle, from the Royal College of Emergency Medicine, told Sky News the situation is "very tough" and added that the problem was particularly acute in London but "this could easily spread".
He said: "Ambulances keep coming in - we are desperate to offload ambulances, that's always been a priority for us… and you feel terrible and a sense of helplessness when you can't… because your emergency department is full."
Advertisement
Speaking about the next two months, he said they are "going to be really tough" with the number of patients continuing to rise.
"Vaccinations are not going to make much of an impact on that just yet, it's going to take a bit longer to start denting that," he said.
More from Covid-19
There were 21,286 people in hospital with coronavirus in the UK on 22 December, the last day for which government figures are available.
This is only slightly less than the 21,683 patients recorded on 12 April.
Meanwhile, a medical expert has told Sky News that the vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca will not bring changes to life in the UK for some time yet.
Dr Bharat Pankhania, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Exeter, said: "It will still take about 50 weeks to immunise 50 million people."
He said the vaccine "will be the one that allows us to immunise a lot of people in a short period of time".
And he added: "It is also easier to give and therefore you can carry it to nursing homes where people cannot come to the immunising centre."
But to get it rolled out across the country the government should consider opening vaccination stations 24 hours a day.
That could "cut the time taken to immunise a large part of the UK population by half - from 50 weeks to 25 weeks," he said.
"It can be done. We're an affluent nation, we've got the logistics, the skills to do these things."
The jab, which unlike the Pfizer one does not have to be stored at ultra low temperatures, could be approved by regulators for use in the coming days.
Dr Pankhania also dismissed reports that the UK could be free of lockdowns by February if the Oxford vaccine is rapidly deployed.
He said: "How are you going to immunise so many people by February in the midst of an apparently more infectious strain and rising case numbers? If you're going to achieve that you need to double-up, triple-up on the immunisation process when the vaccine is licensed."
Image:Hospitals and ambulance services are struggling to cope with the worsening COVID situation
The London Ambulance Service said Boxing Day was one of its "busiest ever days", with 7,918 calls - up by more than 2,500 compared with the same day in 2019.
The numbers were so high that the service was forced to get help from other services across the South.
Sky's Sadiya Chowdhury, reporting from outside the Queen's Hospital in Romford, Greater London said patients there were being treated inside ambulances "because they don't have enough beds left - that's how bad the situation is".
And a consultant at Southampton general hospital told The Guardian of a "scary" situation with a big rise in COVID cases.
They said: "Our general intensive care unit footprint is now completely overfull of COVID patients.
"We have expanded our ICU by 10 extra beds to take ICU patients from both Portsmouth and Kent as they are so hard-pressed. [The situation] is under control so far but unpleasant and scary."
Health service chiefs have warned NHS care providers nationally that they should continue to "plan on the basis that we will remain in a level four incident for at least the rest of this financial year [until early April] and NHS trusts should continue to safely mobilise all of the available surge capacity over the coming weeks".
Shakir Mustafa, a consultant surgeon at the Cwm Taf University Health Board, told Sky News critical care units across South Wales were reaching capacity.
On Sunday, the government said a further 316 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for COVID-19, bringing the UK total to 70,752.
However, Scotland is not releasing death figures between 24 and 28 December and Northern Ireland is not releasing case or death figures during the same period.
It comes as more than 24 million people - or 43% of the population - are in England's highest level of restrictions.
Scotland is also in Level 4 restrictions, a stay-at-home order is in place across Wales, and Northern Ireland is in a six-week lockdown.
Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove has said he is "confident" the staggered return to secondary schools in England can go ahead as planned.
But Mr Gove said the issue was still being reviewed, amid concern over the spread of the new coronavirus variant.
Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland have already delayed or revised plans for pupils' return to the classroom.
Earlier this month, the government said exam year students in England would go back as normal after Christmas.
But the majority of secondary school pupils in England are due to begin the term studying remotely, to give head teachers time to implement a coronavirus testing programme for students and staff.
Mr Gove told BBC Radio 4's Today programme he still expected Year 11 and Year 13 pupils to return in the first week of January, with the rest going back to the classroom later in the month.
"It is our intention to make sure we can get children back to school as early as possible," he said.
He said that prioritising children's attendance in school was "the right thing to do" but he acknowledged concerns about the new variant, which scientists believe may be more transmissible.
"We have a new strain and it is also the case that we have also had, albeit in a very limited way, Christmas mixing, so we do have to remain vigilant," Mr Gove said.
"We are confident that we will be able to get schools back in good order. Our plan and our timetable is there, and we are working with teachers to deliver it."
Mr Gove told BBC Breakfast the safe return to school would be built on an effective testing system, with teachers working "incredibly hard" to implement it.
Mark Tilling, head teacher of High Tunstall College of Science in Hartlepool, told BBC Radio 4's The World At One that he needed to train 21 staff to carry out the mass testing, which would take at least a week from the start of term.
He said: "The key issue for me is, is it safe to open if we can't do mass testing? If it isn't then the government need to make a decision that we can't open."
England: Secondary school pupils in exam years will return at the start of term while others begin their learning online. Face-to-face learning is expected to resume for everyone by 11 January. Primary schools will return as normal
Scotland: Schools will start term on 11 January with learning taking place online until at least 18 January.
Wales: Term will start with online learning, but the majority of pupils are expected to resume face-to-face lessons by 11 January. A full return to the classroom is expected to be complete by 18 January
Northern Ireland: All schools will initially reopen for face-to-face teaching at the start of term, but years 8 to 10 will move to remote learning from 25 January for at least two weeks
Schools in all the UK nations are remaining open for vulnerable children. England, Wales and Scotland have also committed to maintain face-to-face teaching for children of key workers.
Labour's shadow education secretary Kate Green said the government did not have a clear strategy and was not acting quickly enough.
"Parents will be extremely concerned that all they're getting is rumour and innuendo. Teachers and school staff will need to know what is expected of them," she said.
Sir Jeremy Farrar, a member of the government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, told the Today programme the country faced "very, very tough choices" over schools.
He said that while schools were an "absolute priority", there would be a "trade-off" that could mean other parts of society had to stay closed.
The UK faced "continued pressures" from the spread of Covid-19 for at least the next two or three months, Sir Jeremy said.
The National Education Union has suggested that the government should allow schools to hold more classes online for the first two weeks of January to give time for the infection rate to fall.
A medical expert has claimed that if the vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca was rolled out "24/7" it could cut the time taken to immunise a large part of the UK population by half - from 50 weeks to 25 weeks.
The jab, which unlike the Pfizer one does not have to be stored at ultra low temperatures, could be approved by regulators for use in the coming days.
It comes as hospital admissions are nearing the level of the first peak, with one ambulance service reporting that Boxing Day was one of its busiest ever days.
There were 21,286 people in hospital with coronavirus in the UK on 22 December, the last day for which government figures are available.
This is only slightly less than the 21,683 patients recorded on 12 April.
Advertisement
Dr Bharat Pankhania, a senior clinical lecturer at the University of Exeter, told Sky News that the Oxford vaccine "will be the one that allows us to immunise a lot of people in a short period of time.
"It is also easier to give and therefore you can carry it to nursing homes where people cannot come to the immunising centre."
More from Covid-19
He cautioned: "It will still take about 50 weeks to immunise 50 million people." But he said a "24/7" operation could cut that to 25 weeks.
"It can be done. We're an affluent nation, we've got the logistics, the skills to do these things."
Dr Pankhania also dismissed reports that the UK could be free of lockdowns by February if the Oxford vaccine is rapidly deployed.
He said: "How are you going to immunise so many people by February in the midst of an apparently more infectious strain and rising case numbers? If you're going to achieve that you need to double-up, triple-up on the immunisation process when the vaccine is licensed."
Image:Hospitals and ambulance services are struggling to cope with the worsening COVID situation
Meanwhile, the London Ambulance Service said Boxing Day was one of its "busiest ever days", with 7,918 calls - up by more than 2,500 compared with the same day in 2019.
The numbers were so high that the service was forced to get help from other services across the South.
Sky's Sadiya Chowdhury, reporting from outside the Queen's Hospital in Romford, Greater London said patients there were being treated inside ambulances "because they don't have enough beds left - that's how bad the situation is".
And a consultant at Southampton general hospital told The Guardian of a "scary" situation with a big rise in COVID cases.
They said: "Our general intensive care unit footprint is now completely overfull of COVID patients.
"We have expanded our ICU by 10 extra beds to take ICU patients from both Portsmouth and Kent as they are so hard-pressed. [The situation] is under control so far but unpleasant and scary."
Health service chiefs have warned NHS care providers nationally that they should continue to "plan on the basis that we will remain in a level four incident for at least the rest of this financial year [until early April] and NHS trusts should continue to safely mobilise all of the available surge capacity over the coming weeks".
Shakir Mustafa, a consultant surgeon at the Cwm Taf University Health Board, told Sky News critical care units across South Wales were reaching capacity.
"If it's filled with COVID patients, it does not mean that we're just dealing with COVID and not dealing with anything else," he warned.
"It does mean that we are unable to physically have someone who's had a bleed after giving birth, for instance - or had a burst appendix, or somebody suffering from sepsis.
"We'd like to look after all our patients and we're at a situation where this is under threat."
On Sunday, the government said a further 316 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for COVID-19, bringing the UK total to 70,752.
However, Scotland is not releasing death figures between 24 and 28 December and Northern Ireland is not releasing case or death figures during the same period.
It comes as more than 24 million people - or 43% of the population - are in England's highest level of restrictions.
Scotland is also in Level 4 restrictions, a stay-at-home order is in place across Wales, and Northern Ireland is in a six-week lockdown.
There will be "bumpy moments" for UK businesses and travellers as they get to grips with new EU rules, says government minister Michael Gove.
He said there would be "practical and procedural changes" when the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December.
Mr Gove also urged people going to the EU to make extra checks, including looking at mobile phone roaming charges and passport expiry dates.
European ambassadors are due to discuss the post-Brexit trade deal later.
The diplomats will meet to determine how they can provisionally approve the deal, which was agreed on Christmas Eve, in time for the end of the transition period.
In the UK, MPs will vote on the deal on Wednesday.
Meanwhile, UK International Trade Secretary Liz Truss said she expects to sign a continuity trade agreement with Turkey this week - a move that was not possible until the deal with the EU was struck.
Mr Gove told BBC Breakfast: "I'm sure there will be bumpy moments but we are there in order to try to do everything we can to smooth the path."
He warned businesses that time was "very short" to make the final preparations before the transition period ends.
"The nature of our new relationship with the EU - outside the Single Market and Customs Union - means that there are practical and procedural changes that businesses and citizens need to get ready for," he said.
"We know that there will be some disruption as we adjust to new ways of doing business with the EU, so it is vital that we all take the necessary action now."
Businesses have been urged to make sure they understand the new rules on importing and exporting goods, including the different rules that apply to trade with Northern Ireland, and to consider how they will make customs declarations on EU trade.
Mr Gove also encouraged travellers to EU destinations from 1 January to take out comprehensive travel insurance, check their mobile phone provider's roaming charges and make sure they have at least six months left on their passports.
The basics
A Brexit deal has been agreed, days before a deadline. It means that the UK and the EU can continue to trade without extra taxes being put on goods
What took so long? The UK voted to leave the EU in 2016 and actually left on 31 January 2020, but leaders had until the end of 2020 to work out a trade deal
There are big changes ahead. Although it's a trade deal that has been agreed, there will also be changes to how people travel between the EU and UK, and to the way they live and work
But fishermen's leaders have accused him of "caving in" and sacrificing their interests to reach the agreement. And Labour called it a "thin deal" that needed "more work" to protect UK jobs.
Conservative grandee Lord Heseltine has urged MPs and peers to abstain when voting on the deal, warning it will inflict "lasting damage" on the UK.
The former deputy prime minister said he would "in no way share the endorsement of the legislation", but that he would not vote against it because the consequences of a no-deal would be even graver.
Over the weekend, Chancellor Rishi Sunak sought to reassure the City of London that it will not be damaged by the deal.
He said they would be "doing a few things a bit differently" and looking at "how we make the City of London the most attractive place to list new companies anywhere in the world".
The chancellor said the deal was "an enormously unifying moment for our country" and it brought reassurance to those who were concerned about the impact on businesses.
MOST of Britain was blanketed with snow this morning as temperatures are expected to plunge to -3.
The Met Office has issued snow and ice warnings for most of the UK for the next few days just hours after Storm Bella battered the country.
Snowy scenes at the Old schoolhouse, Colliers Row, SmithillsCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
A car makes its way along a snowy road in Builth Wells, Powys, Wales this morningCredit: London News Pictures
Cars were blanketed with snow this morning in BirminghamCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
Families enjoy a morning play in the snow in Keele, StaffordshireCredit: Reuters
A cyclist braved the roads this morning on two wheels in StourbridgeCredit: Getty Images - Getty
Thick snow this morning in Knutsford, CheshireCredit: Alamy Live News
Ambulance and fire crew work to push a stranded car up a road in Cradley Heath, West MidlandsCredit: Alamy Live News
Parts of England, Northern Ireland, most of Scotland and much of Wales have been slapped with yellow weather warnings.
In Manchester heavy snow fell overnight and this morning, causing several crashes on the M6 last night - resulting in motorists caught in tailbacks.
This morning, a thick layer of snow has coated the M60 west near Sale and Barton Bridge.
In England, a warning is in place for snow and ice from the north-west down through the Midlands and across to Taunton in the west and London in the east.
This morning Londoners woke up to temperatures of 0C and are expected to see a maximum of just 5C today, while the mercury is expected to reach the same high in Cardiff.
Snow had already fallen in parts of Scotland, Northern Ireland and England by Sunday afternoon, while more than 100 flood warnings were in place across England following days of stormy conditions.
The yellow warnings from the Met Office, where put place from midnight until 6pm on Monday, advise of the potential for injuries from icy surfaces and delays to trains and road transport.
The chilly temperatures follow several days of wintery weather over the Christmas period which brought flooding to parts of southern England before Storm Bella arrived on Boxing Day with winds of more than 100mph.
Flooding was also reported in parts of eastern England by Sunday morning, with kayakers taking to the roads in Norfolk in an attempt to traverse water-logged streets.
As of 4am this morning, 103 flood warnings remained in place across England calling for immediate action ahead of expected flooding, alongside 193 flood alerts.
More than 300 flood warnings were issued on Sunday as the Environment Agency said: “There continues to be a severe risk to life due to the challenging conditions.”
And people living in areas which faced huge floods as a result of the weather in the past few days will be among those to expect snow.
Despite the bad conditions, gales meant that for the first time ever more than half of Britain's electricity was generated by wind power on Saturday.
According to energy firm Drax, 50.67% of the country's power was produced by wind turbines on Boxing Day.
On Sunday, 1,300 homes near the River Great Ouse in Bedfordshire were evacuated on Sunday as Mayor of Bedford Borough Dave Hodgson said 40 properties had been damaged.
Bedfordshire Fire and Rescue Service also had to rescue two people trapped in their homes by floods.
Council workers handed out sandbags in Cirencester, Glos., while more than 70 homes were without power in the town, while forty homes in Witney, Oxfordshire, flooded.
The M25 QE2 bridge from Essex into Dartford, Kent, was shut and a string of other roads across the region were closed by floods or fallen trees.
In Wales, Western Power said Storm Bella had caused power cuts to around 21,000 homes.
The Welsh Grand National at Chepstow was called off due to a waterlogged course.
And in Cornwall, more than 100 homes were without electricity and 50 were blacked out in Bristol and Bath.
Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick told people to check Government advice on staying safe as the Environment Agency urged everyone to avoid floods.
A spokesman said: “It is often deeper than it looks and just 30cm of flowing water is enough to float your car."
A number of people had to be rescued from vehicles in North Yorkshire after they became stranded in floodwater.
And in Aysgarth, a man and a woman were also rescued by boat from the roof of their car at 2.40am after they drove into deep floodwater.
A van attempts to make it down a snow-covered road in StourbridgeCredit: Getty Images - Getty
A pair of horse riders enjoy a morning hack in Upper Strensham, WorcesterCredit: PA:Press Association
Warnings have been issued for most of the UKCredit: SWNS:South West News Service
This little pooch enjoys a chilly walk this morning in StourbridgeCredit: Getty Images - Getty
Ambulance on blue lights in Harborne, Birmingham this morningCredit: News Dog Media
