People urged to heat main rooms as cold snap begins

People are being advised to heat living rooms during the day and bedrooms before going to sleep as a cold spell hits the UK. Health officials issued the advice to people who cannot heat every room or are struggling with heating costs. Overnight lows of -10C (14F) are predicted in northern Scotland, with snow and ice warnings there, in Wales, Northern Ireland and the east coast. The level three cold weather alert for England begins at 18:00 GMT. Issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), it will run until 09:00 on 12 December, but could be extended further if forecasts predict continued colder temperatures.

The alert is triggered when severe cold weather is likely to affect people's health significantly - particularly those with underlying health conditions.

There is a yellow weather warning for snow and ice in place from midnight on Wednesday until noon on Thursday for northern Scotland. England's east coast has a yellow warning, for ice, from 18:00 GMT until 12:00 GMT on Thursday - with temperatures set to drop as low as -3C (26.6F).

(Source BBC)