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Christmas travel plans could be under threat as Storm Pia is set to bring winds of up to 80mph to parts of the UK.

The Met Office has issued a weather warning for high winds for the northern half of the country today, bringing the potential for travel chaos in the run-up to Christmas.

A yellow wind warning, first issued on Monday, has been amended, with the end time brought forward three hours to 9pm and the warning impact level updated.

The latest UK weather update

Winds of between 70mph and 80mph are forecast for northern Scotland, with up to 65-70mph on high ground.

In other parts of Scotland, as well as Northern Ireland, North Wales and England north from Birmingham, as well as the top half of East Anglia, winds could reach speeds of 45-55mph.

Travel plans are likely to be affected in areas covered by the warning, the Met Office said, with power cuts possible.

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A train operator has “strongly” urged its customers not to travel on services to and from Edinburgh before mid-afternoon, as Storm Pia is expected to cause significant disruption.

Issuing “do not travel” advice, TransPennine Express (TPE) asked customers to delay their journeys in and out of the Scottish capital until after 3pm, as parts of the UK brace for high winds.

TPE said there will be speed restrictions in place from the early hours for trains running to and from Edinburgh and that it will not run services between the city and north-west England until this afternoon.

Elsewhere on the trains, Network Rail said many services will only run once safety inspections have taken place, leading to some cancellations.

The West Highland line, Kyle of Lochalsh line, and the Far North line, along with Inverness-Inverurie services, will all be subject to inspections before trains can run, and speed restrictions will also be in place in the central belt and the south of Scotland.

Travellers have been warned of “short notice changes to journeys” on ScotRail services and are advised to check ahead, while additional engineers will be deployed to deal with any incidents.

Meanwhile, schools in Shetland will be closed today and more electricity network engineers are being brought in to deal with any power cuts.

Ferry services across the west coast of Scotland are expected to be disrupted, ferry operator CalMac said.

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The warning also covers Belfast, Newcastle upon Tyne and Manchester.

High-sided vehicles could be affected on exposed roads and coastal routes could be sprayed by high waves.

The low-pressure system has been named Storm Pia by the Danish authorities, but it was not expected to be severe enough in the UK to warrant being officially named.

Stephen Dixon, a Met Office spokesperson, said: “It is quite a wide wind warning area. Gusts are forecast quite widely.”

The Met Office forecasts showers along with the wind, with more rain expected on Friday.

Looking ahead, Mr Dixon said there was the possibility of snow on Christmas Day but only in the far north of Scotland.

“It looks like there will be a drier afternoon in the south of the UK for those post-Christmas dinner walks,” he said.

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Jaguar Land Rover to ‘pause’ US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

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Jaguar Land Rover to 'pause' US shipments over Donald Trump tariffs

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has said it will “pause” shipments to the US as the British car firm works to “address the new trading terms” of Donald Trump’s tariffs.

The US president has introduced a 25% levy on all foreign cars imported into the country, which came into force on Thursday.

JLR, one of the country’s biggest carmakers, exported about 38,000 cars to the US in the third quarter of 2024 – almost equal to the amount sold to the UK and the EU combined.

Follow live updates: Trump’s baseline 10% tariff kicks in

In a statement on Saturday, a spokesperson for the company behind the Jaguar, Land Rover and Range Rover brands said: “The USA is an important market for JLR’s luxury brands.

“As we work to address the new trading terms with our business partners, we are taking some short-term actions including a shipment pause in April, as we develop our mid- to longer-term plans.”

The company released a statement last week before Mr Trump announced a “baseline” 10% tariff on goods from around the world, which kicked in on Saturday morning, on what he called “liberation day”.

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JLR reassured customers its business was “resilient” and “accustomed to changing market conditions”.

“Our priorities now are delivering for our clients around the world and addressing these new US trading terms,” the firm said.

Trading across the world has been hit by Mr Trump’s tariff announcement at the White House on Wednesday.

All but one stock on the FTSE 100 fell on Friday – with Rolls-Royce, banks and miners among those to suffer the sharpest losses.

Read more: A red wall on Wall Street – but Trump seems to believe it will work out

Cars are the top product exported from the UK to the US, with exports worth £8.3bn in the year to the end of September 2024, according to data from the Office for National Statistics.

For UK carmakers, the US is the second largest export market behind the European Union.

Industry groups have previously warned the tariffs will force firms to rethink where they trade, while a report by thinktank the Institute for Public Policy Research said more than 25,000 car manufacturing jobs in the UK could be at risk.

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

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Two people die after caravan fire at holiday park in Lincolnshire

Two people have died following a fire at a caravan site near Skegness, Lincolnshire Police have said.

In a statement, officers said they were called at 3.53am on Saturday to a report of a blaze at Golden Beach Holiday Park in the village of Ingoldmells.

Fire and rescue crews attended the scene, and two people were found to have died.

They were reported to be a 10-year-old girl and a 48-year-old man.

The force said the victims’ next of kin have been informed and will be supported by specially trained officers.

Officers are trying to establish the exact cause of the blaze.

“We are at the very early stages of our investigation and as such we are keeping an open mind,” the force said.

Two fire crews remain at the scene.

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Boy dies after ‘getting into difficulty’ in lake in southeast London

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Boy dies after 'getting into difficulty' in lake in southeast London

A 15-year-old boy has died after “getting into difficulty” in a lake in southeast London, police say.

Officers and paramedics were called shortly after 3pm on Friday to Beckenham Place Park in Lewisham.

The Metropolitan Police said a boy “was recovered from the lake” at around 10.42pm the same day.

“He was taken to hospital where he was sadly pronounced dead. His death is being treated as unexpected but not believed to be suspicious,” according to the force.

The boy’s family has been told and are being supported by specialist officers.

The force originally said the child was 16 years old, but has since confirmed his age as 15.

In the earlier statement, officers said emergency services carried out a search and the park was evacuated.

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google street view inside Beckenham Place park, Lewisham where a 16 y/o boy is missing after getting into difficulty in a lake
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Emergency teams were called to Beckenham Place Park on Friday afternoon

Beckenham Place Park, which borders the London borough of Bromley, covers around 240 acres, according to the park’s website.

The lake is described as 285 metres long, reaching depths of up to 3.5 metres.

It is designed as a swimming lake for open-water swimming and paddle boarding.

A London Ambulance Service spokesperson said on Friday: “We were called at 3.02pm this afternoon to reports of a person in the water.

“We sent resources to the scene, including an ambulance crew, an incident response officer and members of our hazardous area response team.”

Emergency teams have not explained how the boy entered the water, or whether he was accompanied by others.

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