Snow Alert: Cold Weather 'Beast' To Hit UK

Next Week's Weather In Detail

Updated: 5:53pm UK, Friday 07 December 2012

By Joanna Robinson, weather producer

The first week of December has been a rather chilly one, reminding us that meteorologically speaking we are now in the winter season.

There has been snow in places too, mainly over northern parts of the UK, particularly the Scottish hills and the Pennines.

South-east England has seen a little snow at times too, including this morning.

It's not unusual to see snow in December; in fact, on average the UK will see snowfall on around five days through the month. 

Although the weekend looks to be a little milder, computer models have been hinting, for some time now, that next week will be even colder.

High pressure looks to build across northern parts of Europe, called a blocking high. Its exact position will determine how cold it will get and where it will snow.

There's now much more confidence that a north-easterly flow will bring cold air to the UK next week, but snowfall details are much more uncertain at this point.

Initially, North Sea coastal counties will have the greatest risk of wintry showers, even at low levels.

There's a chance of some significant, disruptive snow across parts of eastern Scotland and eastern England.

Many central and western parts of the UK will start the week dry, but there's a chance of something wintry later.  

Temperatures will continue to fall through the week and will struggle to reach 2C by Thursday - and it'll feel even colder in the wind.

Expect severe overnight frosts too, with a continuing risk of ice. Rural areas will see temperatures plummet, particularly where there's any lying snow.

By the middle of December, computer models diverge. Some keep the cold wintry theme going, while others bring in mild and unsettled conditions.

You don't have to look too far back in the records to find a cold December. In 2010, the UK had its coldest December in over 100 years, whereas 2011 saw the mildest December since 2006.

The cold spell expected next week isn't likely to be as severe as that seen in December 2010, when Altnaharra recorded a minimum temperature of -21.3C.

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Tia Sharp's Grandmother Won't Face Charges

By Tom Parmenter, Sky News Correspondent

The grandmother of Tia Sharp, who was questioned over the 12-year-old's murder, will face no further action.

Christine Sharp was arrested in August after her granddaughter's body was discovered in the loft of her home in New Addington, south London.

The 46-year-old was questioned by police on suspicion of murder and bailed while inquiries continued.

Tia Sharp's body was found a week after the youngster was reported missing

The Metropolitan Police has now confirmed that she will face no further action.

The disappearance of schoolgirl Tia sparked a huge search around the Croydon area with family members leading the campaign.

Police officers had previously visited Christine Sharp's home, but it was only days into the search that Tia's body was discovered hidden in the loft.

Stuart Hazell has been charged with Tia's murder and has been remanded in custody ahead of a trial scheduled for early 2013.

Another man, a 39-year-old neighbour, who was arrested on suspicion of assisting an offender, remains on police bail until mid-December.

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Ched Evans' Cousin: No Apology For Rape Tweet

A teenager who named a rape victim on Twitter has refused to apologise and said paying her compensation was "the last thing" she wanted to do.

The victim's name was circulated on the social networking site and on Facebook after footballer Ched Evans was convicted of raping her in April.

Evans' cousin, Gemma Thomas, and eight other defendants were each ordered to pay the victim £624 after they admitted revealing her identity.

Rape victims are entitled to lifelong anonymity by law, unless they agree to waive their anonymity.

Tweets sent by Thomas, 18, accused the victim of "money-grabbing" and "ruining lives".

Footballer Ched Evans was jailed in April

In an interview on BBC Radio 5 Live, she said she regretted her actions but continued to stand by her cousin.

Thomas, from Rhyl, North Wales, said she initially thought the punishment was a fine, and "couldn't believe it" when her solicitor explained it was compensation.

Asked why, she said: "Because it's the last thing I wanted to do, pay her compensation.

"I understand it's against the law and I wouldn't have minded having a big fine because I understand what I did was wrong, but it's the fact that it's compensation and it's just... it's hard thinking that I've got to pay compensation, knowing that I know my cousin is innocent."

Asked whether she would apologise directly to Evans' victim, Thomas added: "I don't know. No."

In April, Evans, who played for Sheffield United and Wales, was found guilty by a jury at Caernarfon Crown Court of raping a 19-year-old woman in a hotel room in Rhyl.

The player admitted having sex with her but claimed it was consensual. The prosecution said she was too drunk to consent.

Evans, 23, originally from St Asaph, Denbighshire, and now of Penistone, South Yorkshire, was jailed for five years.

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British Scientists To Explore Lost Antarctic Lake

Lake Ellsworth Ice Mission Q&A

Updated: 7:42am UK, Saturday 08 December 2012

As the scientists prepare to start drilling, Sky's Thomas Moore answers the key questions about the project.

Where is Lake Ellsworth?

The lake is under the West Antarctic ice sheet, 70km west of the Ellsworth Mountains.

Seismic studies suggest it is approximately 150m deep and is roughly the same size as Windermere.

There are over 360 sub-glacial lakes known to exist below Antarctica's vast ice sheet.

How remote is it?

The team has travelled 16,000km to reach Lake Ellsworth, flying first to the southern tip of Chile and then on to the drilling site in a smaller aircraft that is able to land on ice. In all, the flight time was five days.

Equipment was air-freighted to a runway on the Union Glacier and then hauled by tractor train 280km through the Ellsworth mountain range.

What are living conditions like?

The team will spend six weeks at the camp. Outside the wind-chill can dip to minus 70 degrees Celsius.

They will sleep in four-man clam tents. In the 24-hour daylight of the Antarctic summer, temperatures inside are generally between four and 20 degrees.

A larger tent serves as a kitchen, dining area and office.

A chef provides freshly-cooked food - even bread.

How will the engineers drill through the ice?

The team had to design a sophisticated hot-water drilling rig that could bore through the ice without contaminating the pristine waters of the lake.

Around 90,000 litres of water will be heated to 90 degrees Celsius by a 1.5 MW boiler and pumped at high pressure through a 3.2km continuous hose that has been made to support its own weight and the heavy drill head.

The drill should melt a 36cm borehole through the 3km of ice in around 100 hours.

Once drilling starts there is no turning back - the water in the hose would quickly freeze.

And then?

Once they breakthrough into the lake, scientists will drop down a titanium probe to sample the water at various depths. Built by the National Oceanography Centre in Southampton, it contains 3,000 individual components.

Then they will use a highly specialised sediment corer to take a 3m column of the lake-bed.

The equipment has been sterilised to space-industry standards using hydrogen peroxide vapour to prevent surface microbes contaminating the lake.

All this has to be done within 24 hours or the borehole will be too narrow to retrieve the samples

Won't the scientists risk a geyser when they drill through to the lake?

Millions of tonnes of ice are pressing down on the lake. But the engineers have a plan to stop the water bursting back up to the surface when they breakthrough.

The first borehole will stop at 300m, where they will create a cavity. A second borehole will go through the cavity down to the lake. The cavity controls the pressure of the water.

What if they don't find life?

The scientists say that, too, would be significant. It would show there is a limit at which no life can exist on our planet.

But they are confident they will find microbes - wherever else there is water on Earth there is life.

And that would encourage scientists who believe there may be life in the seas below the icy crust of Jupiter's moon Europa.

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Drink-Driving: Crashed Car Shown To Clubbers

A dad whose daughter was killed in a drink-drive crash hopes that parking her wrecked car outside nightclubs will stop others getting behind the wheel while over the limit.

The man, who wants to remain anonymous, lost his eldest daughter in the crash near Fleet, Hampshire, last November.

The 23-year-old was four times over the drink-drive limit when her Vauxhall Corsa collided with a van on her way home from a night out. She died instantly.

Her father has now agreed to let police display her car in town centres in Hampshire and on the Isle of Wight in the hope it will encourage others not to drink and drive.

"I wanted to tell my story, her story, because I wanted people to see what devastation they can cause by making that choice," he said.

"It's a split second decision which can have far-reaching consequences.

"To anyone else who would consider getting behind the wheel after having alcohol, I plead with you as a father, as the husband of a devastated mother, as the parent of two grieving children and on behalf of the many people who knew and loved my daughter, please don't.

"You can't imagine the pain you could leave behind, either for your family or for someone else's."

The Smashed campaign will target drivers aged between 20 and 24, who accounted for nearly a quarter of drive-drink arrests last Christmas.

Interviews with some of the emergency service personnel who attended the crash, including paramedic Kate McDougall and firefighter Craig Gregory, have been released on YouTube as part of the campaign.

Sergeant Jay Hewes, of Hampshire Constabulary, said: "We don't ever want to tell another parent, partner or child, that someone they love is gone, but chances are that before the year is out, we will have to.

"If one person, regardless of their age, sits up and takes notice, this young person will have left a legacy her parents can take some comfort from and those who knew her can be proud of."

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First Picture Of Kate Hospital Hoax Nurse

The first picture has been released of a nurse who apparently committed suicide after being duped by a prank call.

Nurse Jacintha Saldanha was found dead days after taking the hoax call from an Australian radio station and putting it through to a nurse on the Duchess of Cambridge's ward, who divulged private information about her treatment.

The body of the 46-year-old mother-of-two was discovered at an address near King Edward VII's hospital in London - where she had worked for four years - on Friday morning.

Kate, who is understood to be well under 12 weeks pregnant, was admitted to the hospital on Monday with severe morning sickness and released again on Thursday.

Kate was treated at the hospital for severe morning sickness

Royal College of Nursing chief executive Dr Peter Carter said: "It is deeply saddening that a simple human error due to a cruel hoax could lead to the death of a dedicated and caring member of the nursing profession."

Her family said in a statement: "We as a family are deeply saddened by the loss of our beloved Jacintha."

Driving instructor Jeff Sellick, who taught Ms Saldanha last year, told Sky News she was a "delight to teach".

"I heard about it yesterday and it's just such a shame she was such a nice person, I can only imagine what happened would have played heavily on her mind," he told Sky News.

Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard called it a "terrible tragedy"

"I just feel for the family at this point because she must have been deeply traumatised by what happened to her."

The storm over 2Day FM's prank is growing; major firms have pulled advertising while presenters Mel Greig and Michael Christian have been taken off air.

Speaking at a news conference in Melbourne, Rhys Holleran, CEO of 2Day FM's parent company Southern Cross Austereo said the "shocked and devastated" DJs had been offered help dealing with the tragedy.

He said: "This is a tragic event that could not have been reasonably foreseen and we're deeply saddened by it.

"I spoke to both presenters early this morning and it's fair to say they're completely shattered.

"These people aren't machines, they're human beings. We're all affected by this."

Supermarket giant Coles and telecoms firm Telstra both announced they are withdrawing their business from the station at the earliest opportunity, while Australian media are reporting that media company Optus is also reviewing its position.

The station later announced that it would pull all advertising from its airwaves with immediate effect.

The Australian Communications and Media Authority, which regulates the country's media industry, said it had been inundated with complaints.

Meanwhile, a spokesman for Australian Prime Minister Julia Gillard described the incident as a "terrible tragedy".

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Belfast Flag Violence: Rioting In City Centre

Belfast has been hit by another night of rioting as hundreds of loyalists took to the streets to protest over flags.

Eight police officers were injured, with two needing hospital treatment, and five people were arrested following clashes across the city.

Police are carrying out a major security operation to prevent further violence later today.

With a major protest planned in the city's centre, traders are worried business could be seriously affected on what should be one of the busiest shopping days of the year.

The Christmas market in Belfast city has been temporarily closed.

Police vans cut off part of Belfast's Sandy Row area

Trouble flared at Shaftesbury Square - a popular party spot near Queen's University - after a man tried to drive a black van through a loyalist road block of about 200 people.

Eye witnesses said police officers were pelted with stones, bricks, bottles and other missiles. Two cars were also set on fire.

Two PSNI water cannons were deployed to the area but were not used against the rioters.

There were also reports of minor sporadic disorder in other parts of the city.

PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Will Kerr said: "This behaviour is simply not acceptable. These people are only wrecking their own communities and putting innocent people's lives at risk.

"Twenty-one officers have been injured so far this week dealing with this disorder. That's 21 officers who have been pulled away from their roles of protecting the community."

A burned out car in Belfast city centre after rioters dispersed

"This mob violence and intimidation cannot be allowed to continue and I am urgently appealing to politicians and those with community influence in these areas to do what they can to put a stop to this behaviour now before someone is seriously injured or killed."

He added that the PSNI would provide a "very strong presence" over the weekend "to assist in creating a safe environment for everyone".

Loyalists opposed to a restriction on the number of days the Union flag can be flown over Belfast City Hall have held protests across Northern Ireland every night since the decision was taken, despite appeals from the First Minister for the pickets to be suspended.

Last night, demonstrations were also held in the greater Belfast area, Bangor, Co Down, Enniskillen, Co Fermanagh and Dungannon, Co Tyrone.

Police said there were no reports of violence outside Belfast. On Friday night, police clashed with loyalists in Ian Paisley's home town of Ballymena, Co Antrim.

During her visit to Northern Ireland, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton appealed for the violence to stop.

Hillary Clinton has condemned the recent violence

Much of the anger has been directed towards the non sectarian Alliance Party, whose councillors in Belfast voted to limit the number of days the Union flag could be flown over the city hall from 365 to 17.

A death threat against the party's only MP, Naomi Long, marked a significant escalation in the seriousness of the sectarian tension.

On Wednesday, a constituency office in Carrickfergus, Co Antrim was destroyed in an arson attack. An attempt to burn down Bangor premises occupied by the Alliance Party's Employment Minister Stephen Farry was thwarted.

Belfast city councillor Laura McNamee was also advised to leave her home while two others living in Bangor had their house vandalised.

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Suffolk Light Aircraft Crash: One Person Dead

One person has died after a light aircraft crashed into a tree in a Suffolk village.

Suffolk Police said the aircraft came down in Aldham, near Hadleigh, where it collided with a tree and became submerged in a pond.

At around the same time as the crash, homes in Aldham and nearby Elmsett lost power because of a fault on the 11,000-volt overhead electricity distribution network.

A spokesman for UK Power Networks said engineers were working with emergency services at the site of the plane crash to restore power "as quickly and as safely as possible".

Local resident Alison Gillies told Sky News she could see smoke rising from land behind her house.

"There are a huge number of emergency services in the village and our power was off for around three or four hours," she said.

Ms Gillies said it was not unusual to see light aircraft flying over Aldham as they take off from or land at Elmsett Airfield to the northwest.

Suffolk Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters from Woodbridge, Hadleigh, Needham Market, Bury St Edmunds and Halstead, Essex, were called to the village, around eight miles from Ipswich.

Police and ambulance crews and a water rescue team were also sent to the scene.

An area around the crash site was cordoned off and the Air Accidents Investigation Branch were alerted.

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Cancer Boy Court Case Delayed For A Week

By Nick Martin, Sky Correspondent

The mother of a seven-year-old boy with cancer has said she does not want him to receive potentially life-saving radiotherapy because she is worried about the side effects.

Neon Roberts underwent surgery on a brain tumour in October and as a follow-up treatment doctors recommended a course of radiotherapy and chemotherapy.

But his mother Sally Roberts said the side effects of the radiation could have a "damaging effect on his future".

Her estranged husband Ben Roberts, however, agrees with doctors who say his chances of survival would be increased if he had the treatment.

A High Court judge will rule on the matter later this month. A decision had been expected on Saturday, but a "change in the medical landscape" meant a new hearing was set for December 18 and 19.

Giving evidence to the court on Friday, Mrs Roberts said: "I wish for the best future for my son, the best quality of life. I fear radiotherapy could have damaging effects on his future."

Mrs Roberts described her son as having an "incredible sense of humour" and being "a great artist, vibrant and healthy".

She told the court that she had researched the side effects of radiotherapy and asked experts for advice.

She said she feared his IQ would be affected and that he could have a shorter life with increased chances of suffering a stroke.

Doctors said the boy's chances of surviving would be significantly reduced if he did not receive the radiotherapy and want to start the treatment next Thursday.

A doctor involved in Neon's care told the court that Ms Roberts' comments were very sensible and accepted that there could be side effects but said that without the treatment the little boy could die within a few months.

"I think it is a balance. I don't think it's a fine balance,"  said the doctor. "There is a distinct disadvantage in terms of the overall survival.

"There are side effects that occur but we must not underestimate the quality of life of patients who have these side effects."

He added: "The vast majority of parents will have concerns whether to make the decision but go with the treatment recommended."

Mr Roberts was not at the hearing because he was with Neon - but he wrote to tell the judge that he had agreed to radiotherapy because it seemed to be the"best course".

"Obviously I am concerned about side effects and slightly apprehensive about radiotherapy," said Mr Roberts' message.

"If Sally produces sufficient evidence that radiotherapy is not a necessity then I am happy to support her."

Mr Justice Bodey said the boy's condition was "the stuff of every parent's nightmare" and that he would balance the benefits of radiotherapy against the "downsides" when making his decision.

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Starbucks Tax Protest: Stores 'Shut Down'

Campaigners claim to have shut down a number of Starbucks' UK stores during protests over the coffee chain's tax arrangements.

Activisit group UK Uncut had planned more than 40 demonstrations across the country, "transforming" shops into refuges, creches and homeless shelters to highlight the "disproportionate" effect the coalition government's cuts to the public sector are having on women.

Pictures uploaded to its Facebook page showed campaigners holding banners and posters while others staged sit-in protests.

The demonstrations came despite an announcement from Starbucks that it expects to pay around £10m in UK corporation tax for each of the next two years.

It followed a revelation that the US-owned company has paid just £8.6m in 14 years of trading in Britain and nothing in the last three years.

Starbucks' Kris Engskov wrote an open letter to customers on Thursday

Lisa Stewart, a 30-year-old UK Uncut activist, said: "If they (the Government) made tax-dodgers like Starbucks pay, that would bring in £25bn a year. Think of all the spending cuts we could cover with that.

"Today we are standing up for the women's services we refuse to see destroyed."

Ms Stewart said the reaction from customers inside the store in London where she had campaigned had been positive, adding: "There is lots of anger out there and people realise they are being lied to."

In an open letter to customers on Thursday, Kris Engskov, managing director of Starbucks UK, said the company had begun "a process of enhancing trust with customers and the communities that we have been honoured to serve for the past 14 years".

He said the company injects nearly £300m annually into the UK economy, and will train more than 1,000 apprentices over the next two years.

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