UK weather live: Airports close runways as snow and freezing rain hits country

Racing was set to go ahead at Chepstow and Plumpton after both racecourses passed morning inspections.

“Inspection passed, racing goes ahead,” Chepstow posted on their X account after a second examination had been held at 9am.

Plumpton also provided positive news after holding an 8.30am inspection, posting on X: “Racing goes ahead. 25mm of rain overnight, some standing water but ground is currently safe to race.

“Up to 5mm of rain to come. We will continue to monitor but currently no further inspection planned.”

The Sky Bet League Two fixtures between Chesterfield and Gillingham and Fleetwood and AFC Wimbledon were postponed on Sunday morning.

“Due to the fitness of the pitch and surrounding area due to heavy snowfall on the Fylde Coast during Saturday night into Sunday morning a call was made in consultation with the EFL and PGMOL,” Fleetwood said announcing the postponement of the fixture.

Liverpool say “every effort” is being made for their home game with Manchester United to take place on Sunday amid adverse weather conditions on Merseyside, with a decision expected just after midday.

Snow fell across Merseyside and the north west overnight and Liverpool City Council’s Safety Advisory Group met on Sunday morning to determine whether the Premier League match could go ahead due to access issues.

The group will reconvene at midday in the hope that weather conditions will ease and the fixture – one of the biggest in English football – will kick-off as scheduled at 4.30pm.

“A safety meeting was held this morning to assess the weather and travel conditions for today’s fixture against Manchester United at Anfield,” league leaders Liverpool posted on their official X account.

“At this stage the match is planned to go ahead as normal and every effort is being made to get the game on.

“A further safety meeting will take place again at midday to assess the latest conditions.

“We will update supporters just as soon as we can. Please take extra care out there, Reds.”

Leeds Bradford Airport said it had closed its runway this morning after disruption caused by heavy snowfall.

In a statement posted on its website, the airport said its team were “working hard to clear snow and minimise the impact on flight schedules”.

Passengers have also been advised to walk to the terminal with the long stay and car rental shuttle bus service temporarily postponed.

Some morning departures have been rescheduled to this afternoon, the airport said.

It said it is hoping to reopen the runway at midday, although this is subject to change. Either way passengers will be provided with a further update then.

The closure comes after several other major UK airports closed their runways over Saturday evening and Sunday morning.

Up to 25cm of snow as well as ice could hit roads in northern England, National Highways has warned.

Snow closed the A628 Woodhead Pass which connects Greater Manchester and South Yorkshire through the Peak District overnight in both directions between the A616 at Flouch and the A57 at Hollingworth.

The A66 in County Durham and Cumbria was closed between the M6 and A1M because of the conditions, while two of four lanes on the M1 northbound between J30 Worksop and J31 Sheffield in South Yorkshire were shut after a collision involving a HGV.

One lane of the northbound A3 in Hampshire was closed on Sunday morning due to flooding following overnight snow, National Highways said.

As well as snow, National Highways warned rain may initially fall on frozen ground and lead to ice, with areas of high ground, including the Cotswolds and Peak District, most at risk.

A new yellow weather warning for rain has been issued for southern England on Sunday.

The Met Office said disruption was likely to bus and train services while spray and flooding on roads would delay car journeys.

The warning is in place from Cornwall across to Kent and will last until 9am on Monday.

A second safety meeting is scheduled for midday GMT to determine whether the clash can be staged at Anfield after an amber weather warning was issued for much of the north of England. A first meeting was held earlier after runways were closed at both Manchester Airport and Liverpool John Lennon Airport amid widespread travel disruption.

Should the fixture go ahead, Arne Slot’s side will be looking to further seize control of the title race. More dropped points for Arsenal yesterday only strengthens Liverpool’s position with a game still in hand on their rivals. Things are rather less buoyant at Old Trafford at the moment with the arrival of Ruben Amorim not transforming Manchester United’s fortunes. The visitors have won just two league matches since he took over in November, with recent losses to Wolves and Newcastle illustrating the scale of the job on the Portuguese’s hands.

Follow all the latest news from Anfield in The Independent’s sports team’s live blog below:

Passengers on the UK’s flagship train operator, London North Eastern Railway (LNER) have been urged to defer their rail journeys tomorrow on the East Coast main line.

The line connects London King’s Cross with Yorkshire, northeast England and Scotland.

“Due to heavy snow, train services running across the whole London North Eastern Railway network may be cancelled or delayed,” the company says.

“LNER tickets for travel on Sunday 5 January will be valid for use on Monday 6 January.

“If you are unable to defer your journey, you can use your ticket on the following train companies at no extra cost: TransPennine Express between Manchester, Leeds and York/Newcastle. Northern on any reasonable route. Great Northern and Thameslink between London Kings Cross, Stevenage and Peterborough.

“Please be aware that other operators’ services are also likely to be busy. We’re working with Network Rail to get our services moving again as quickly as possible.“

Another East Coast main line company, Hull Trains, has warned: “Due to hazardous weather conditions, rail replacement services are currently unable to run. This will be reassessed at midday. We apologise for any inconvenience.”

Ryan Brewer is aboard Qatar Airways flight QR21 from Doha to Manchester, which has diverted to Birmingham.

He told The Independent: “Sat on tarmac for over two hours with hope of flying back to Manchester.

“Just been told no ground support here to refuel, etc, and the crew are out of hours so we have to disembark. What are our rights?”

Under air passengers’ rights rules, the airline must arrange onward transport – which is likely to involve coaches. For many passengers, though, a better option is likely to be a train from Birmingham International station, adjacent to the airport.

As well as reclaiming the train fare, passengers can claim for a meal while they wait. But cash compensation is not payable because the airline is not responsible for the disruption.