Hundreds of schools in the UK were closed on Thursday after temperatures fell to lower than minus 13C (8.6F) for the second night in a row.
Travel across the country will be affected on Thursday, with trains cancelled and warnings in place across large parts of the UK at times, as the cold snap continues.
The lowest recorded temperature overnight was minus 13.6C (7.5F) at Tulloch Bridge in the Highlands, slightly warmer than 24 hours earlier, when it got as low as minus 14C (6.8F) – the coldest night of the winter so far.
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With as much as 20cm (8 inches) of snow forecast to fall across northern Scotland, the Orkney and Shetland Islands, the Met Office has issued an amber warning for snow in those areas, lasting until 6pm on Thursday.
An amber warning means people should be ready to have any plans disrupted by severe weather, including through travel delays, road and rail closures, power cuts and the potential risk to life and property.
All the schools in Orkney and Shetland were closed on Thursday and many have been shut since Monday.
Around 130 schools in Aberdeenshire were shut and others have delayed openings.
Other parts of Scotland and Northern Ireland have a yellow snow and ice warning for the whole day, while further wintry outbreaks are expected over the next 24 hours in the north and northwest of the UK.
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Other shorter snow and ice warnings are in place for Wales and southwest England, eastern England and parts of southeast England, but all are due to finish by noon on Thursday.
Met Office chief meteorologist Jason Kelly predicted “a significant topping up of [snow] totals over the next couple of days, especially for those in the north of Scotland.”
The area of the amber warning could see an additional 15-20cm (6-8 inches) in a few locations.
He also warned of snow drifts and “temporary blizzard conditions” amid strong winds.
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Travel warnings are also in place across Scotland, with several rail lines either not running or taking longer.
Scotland’s transport minister Fiona Hyslop said trunk roads had been gritted, but others may be impacted and urged people to allow extra time for their journeys or delay travelling.
Great Northern, Thameslink, ScotRail and South Western Railway have already been impacted by delays and National Rail warned the wintry weather could affect other train journeys on Thursday.
People in Northern Ireland have been urged not to travel unless it is “absolutely essential” because the biggest public sector strike in the region’s recent history means only limited gritting has been carried out on the roads amid zero-degree temperatures.
Another frosty night is forecast into Friday. Lows of minus 10C (14F) will again be likely in some areas.
Mild, wet and windy conditions are forecast for the weekend.
Princess Beatrice has given birth to a baby girl named Athena several weeks prematurely, Buckingham Palace has said.
The late Queen’s granddaughter was due to give birth in early spring and was told in December not to travel long distances.
Mother and daughter are now both said to be at home and doing well.
In a statement, the palace said: “Her Royal Highness Princess Beatrice and Mr Edoardo Mapelli Mozzi are delighted to announce the safe arrival of their daughter, Athena Elizabeth Rose Mapelli Mozzi, born on Wednesday 22nd January, at 12.57pm, at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital, London.
“The baby was born weighing four pounds and five ounces.
“Their Majesties The King and Queenand other members of the Royal Family have all been informed and are delighted with the news.”
Mr Mapelli Mozzi posted a tribute to his new daughter, calling her “tiny and absolutely perfect”.
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He wrote on Instagram sharing a photograph of Athena wrapped in a blanket: “Athena Elizabeth Rose Mapelli Mozzi.
“We welcomed baby Athena into our lives last week. She is tiny and absolutely perfect.
“We are all (including Wolfie and Sienna) already completely besotted with her.
“Our hearts are overflowing with love for you, baby Athena.
“A massive thank you from my wife and I goes out to all the wonderful staff at the Chelsea and Westminster Hospital for their exceptional care and support during this incredibly special time.”
The couple share a three-year-old daughter, Sienna. Mr Mapelli Mozzi also has an eight-year-old son, Wolfie.
Princess Beatrice’s sister Princess Eugenie celebrated the new arrival by posting “Welcome Baby Girl” and sharing Mr Mapelli Mozzi’s photograph on her Instagram Stories.
• Bank of Scotland Alexandria – 02/03/2026 • Bank of Scotland Annan – 02/03/2026 • Bank of Scotland Barrhead – 21/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Bishopbriggs – 21/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Edinburgh Corstorphine West – 29/10/2025 • Bank of Scotland Edinburgh Wester Hailes – 27/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Helensburgh – 05/03/2026 • Bank of Scotland Kirkintilloch – 22/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Moffat – 29/10/2025 • Bank of Scotland Peebles – 27/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Pitlochry – 30/10/2025 • Bank of Scotland Sanquhar – 28/05/2025 • Bank of Scotland Thornhill – 03/11/2025 • Bank of Scotland Uddingston – 22/05/2025
Lloyds blamed the move on customers shifting away from banking in person to using online services, meaning there is less need for physical sites.
It made the announcement just weeks after taking the decision to allow its customers to access on-site services across any of the group’s branded branches.
Lloyds also revealed the planned closure of two major offices – in Liverpool and Dunfermline – affecting more than 1,000 staff.
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A spokesperson said: “Over 20 million customers are using our apps for on-demand access to their money and customers have more choice and flexibility than ever for their day-to-day banking.
“Alongside our apps, customers can also use telephone banking, visit a community banker or use any Halifax, Lloyds or Bank of Scotland branch, giving access to many more branches.
“Customers can also do their everyday banking at over 11,000 branches of the Post Office or in a Banking Hub.”
The UK’s big banking brands have been shutting branches at pace since the fallout from the financial crisis in 2008 which sparked a rush to cut costs.
The uptake of digital banking services has seen more than 6,000 sites go to the wall since 2015, according to the consumer group Which?
The closure plan revealed on Wednesday will bring the Lloyds brand down to 386 branches, Halifax down to 281 branches and Bank of Scotland to 90 branches once completed.
Campaigners have long argued that the rate of closures has been too quick to allow alternatives, such as banking hubs, to fill the void.
The elderly are least likely to bank online while rural communities have been particularly hard hit through the loss of banking services altogether.
Banking hubs are physical sites where services are shared.
As of September 2024, there were 76 across the UK though that number was set to more than double within months, according to Cash Access UK.
It could increase potential GDP (Gross Domestic Product) by 0.43% by 2050, a Frontier Economics study found, she said.
Ms Reeves said an expansion could create more than 100,000 jobs.
The announcement has been welcomed by some business groups but anger by London’s Labour mayor Sadiq Khan, the Lib Dems, the Green Party and environmental groups.
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As part of a speech on funding infrastructure across the UK to promote growth, Ms Reeves said: “Persistent delays have caused doubts about our seriousness towards improving our economic prospects.”
She added that business groups like the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), the Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) and the Chambers of Commerce (BCC), as well as trade unions “are clear – a third runway is badly needed”.
Ms Reeves said the UK is “already making great strides in transitioning to cleaner and greener aviation” and announced the government is investing £63m over the next year into the Advanced Fuel Fund grant programme to support the development of sustainable aviation fuel production plants.
The government will be accepting proposals until the summer and will then carry out a “full assessment” through the Airport National Policy Statement to “ensure a third runway is delivered in line with our legal, environmental and climate objectives”.
Ms Reeves said the government expects any associated surface transport costs to the third runway’s construction will be financed through private funding.
However, he said last week he would not resign if the government approved a third runway despite threatening to resign from Gordon Brown’s cabinet as climate change secretary in 2009 over the plans and in 2018 he said an expansion was “very likely” to make air pollution worse.
He has now said the government can meet both its growth and net zero missions together.
Labour Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said he remains opposed to a third runway “because of the severe impact it will have on noise, air pollution and meeting our climate change targets”.
He said he will carefully scrutinise any new proposals, “including the impact it will have on people living in the area and the huge knock-on effects for our transport infrastructure”.
“Despite the progress that’s been made in the aviation sector to make it more sustainable, I’m simply not convinced that you can have hundreds of thousands of additional flights at Heathrow every year without a hugely damaging impact on our environment,” he added.
Green Party MP Sian Berry said expanding airports “in the face of a climate emergency is the most irresponsible announcement from any government I have seen since the Liz Truss budget”.
Conservative shadow chancellor Mel Stride accused Ms Reeves and Sir Keir Starmer, and “their job destroying budget” of being “the biggest barriers to growth”.
“What’s worse, the anti-growth chancellor could not rule out coming back with yet more tax rises in March,” he added.
“This is a Labour government run by politicians who do not understand business, or where wealth comes from. Under new leadership, the Conservatives will continue to back businesses and hold this government to account.”
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.