Met Office warns of snow, ice and 80mph winds as cold front returns

The mild weather of the last few days is forecast to be abruptly replaced by a cold front this week, with parts of the UK facing blizzard conditions and strong winds of up to 80mph.

From Tuesday (4 January) temperatures will be “noticeably colder across the whole of the country”, according to the Met Office.

This chilly climes comes following the warmest New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day on record after warm winds from the mid-Atlantic caused temperatures to hover around 16C.

What has the Met Office said?

The Met Office has issued a yellow weather warning of snow and ice for northern Scotland on Tuesday (4 January) and Wednesday 5 (January).

A yellow weather warning for ice has also been issued for northern England.

This could lead to travel disruption, particularly for higher routes.

It will be much colder than recently in the UK with wintry showers, according to the Met Office.

The UK Health Security Agency urges people to check on those vulnerable in the coming days.

Forecaster Simon Partridge said: “It’s basically what we should have for this time in January; it’s just that we’ve been so mild for so long that it’s suddenly a bit of a shock to the system.

“It will definitely be colder, so if you’re going out, think about an extra layer tomorrow [Tuesday] … you might need anything to keep the wind out because it’s not going to be pretty.”

What is this week’s forecast?