UK must be prepared for burst of 'violent' weather

Last week’s weather bomb saw 80mph winds, high waves  and hundreds of lightning strikes across north-western parts of the UK.

The volatile storms also temporarily cut power across the Western Isles and caused heavy disruption to transport links.

It was a stark reminder that the UK is far from impervious to extreme weather, but Transport Minister Baroness Kramer says provisions are in place across the UK to combat such conditions.

She said: “In the Department for Transport we are very concerned that we cope effectively that everything the winter weather can throw at us.

"We’ve obviously learned lessons from past years.

"It’s really important that we have the kind of stocks of salt that we need on hand, and coming here is part of making that point, which is that salt is available.

"We’ve stocked up, we’ve got reserves if we need them. This is just a vital part of our winter preparation.”

Baroness Kramer said it is vital that local authorities stock up with rock salt regardless of whether the UK has experienced any extreme weather in recent times.

She said: “The MET forecasts, as I understand, are for a relatively mild winter but that doesn’t mean we can’t get these sudden burst of really violent and extreme weather.

“We had the winter bomb and I think we have to get used to the idea that these volatile events can happen and that mean preparation, preparation, preparation.”

In April Baroness Kramer visited a number of areas affecting by flooding to how they were recovering, and said what was really evident was just how local the planning needs to be.

“Areas that had experienced bad weather in the past had that kind of framework in place and actually coped very well with some very violent and difficult conditions,” she said.

“I think we’re learning much better how to do this.

“Communication is absolutely vital, being prepared is absolutely vital and the front line of defence in the end tends very much to be local people.”