Post by Paddy by Grace on Jan 14, 2010 10:39:06 GMT -7
Panic Buying in Supermarkets as the Weather Tightens Its Grip on Britain
standeyo.com/NEWS/10_Food_Water/100112.UK.panic.buying.html
January 11, 2010
David Brown and Paul Simons
UK Times
Fears over supplies of fresh milk led to the Government relaxing restrictions on delivery drivers yesterday amid reports of panic buying.
Farmers were concerned that many thousands of gallons would have to be dumped because of the delays in milk tankers reaching dairies after the snow and ice.
The Government has also been forced to ration dwindling grit supplies for roads, despite forecasts that the worst of the snow is over and that the thaw will start this week.
Schools were urged to stay open this week so that pupils can take GCSE and A-level exams.
Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, said that it was vital that head teachers “do everything possible” to stay open to avoid disrupting exams and lessons.
“I am sure that no head will take the decision to close lightly,” Mr Balls said. “It is important they take a balanced judgment and do not overstate the risks of playground slips or reduced supervision.”
Ofqual, the regulator of examinations in England, said that pupils could sit their exams in the summer or their schools could apply for special arrangements to be made to arrive at an estimated grade.
The Department for Transport relaxed EU limits on working hours for drivers of milk tankers and will today review similar changes for road gritters and animal feed suppliers.
Supermarkets in some areas are reported to have sold out of essentials including bread, milk and salt. Farmers were also said to be struggling to harvest vegetables in the freeze, which could lead to higher food prices.
Stephen Alambritis, chief spokesman for the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “Our members have had a run on vegetables and food. The replacements have been thin on the ground. There is concern that farmers have not been able to bring the harvest in for such items as potatoes, sprouts and cabbages, which reduces the amount available to stores — and pushes up prices.”
John Hirst, chief executive of the Met Office, defended the organisation’s inaccurate seasonal forecasts, which suggested that this would be a mild winter. “These things get misunderstood,” he said. “To be honest they are sold as probabilities and the seasonal forecasts, which are young and developing, aren’t part of our operational suite.”
Mr Hirst said that there would be less snow than expected over the next two days. Warm air would then push in from the South West but it was too difficult to predict whether that would bring rain or snow.
Dwindling grit supplies have meant that councils have been forced to cut use by a quarter. In Buckinghamshire thieves stole 15 tonnes of grit from a council depot and Torfaen council in South Wales said that it was not refilling grit bins as drivers in large vehicles and vans had been emptying them.
The Highways Agency stopped gritting the hard shoulders on motorways in England while councils have had to ensure that main routes — for public transport, outside hospitals, schools and supermarkets — are free of ice.
About 12,000 tonnes of salt destined for Germany was diverted to Britain after an emergency request from local authorities. Fifty trucks left the Ineos salt distribution facility in Runcorn, Cheshire, yesterday, with another 50 expected today. The salt will be supplied to the worst-affected areas, including Pembrokeshire in Wales, East Yorkshire, Fife, Gloucestershire, Bradford and Sheffield.
However, there was concern that London’s economy could suffer unless the capital received more grit. Colin Barrow, the leader of Westminster City Council, said: “The West End is the economic powerhouse of London and more than 300,000 jobs are dependent on it. Businesses have had a hard enough time as it is in the recession so their recovery must not be put in further jeopardy through the national rationing of salt stocks.”
Lord Adonis, the Transport Secretary, defended the rationing, and said that it would help to keep the major road network open. The Government’s “Salt Cell” will meet today to direct the distribution of new supplies.
Caroline Spelman, the Shadow Local Government Secretary, accused the Government of “rapidly losing control of the situation”.
“The Government has failed to build up a strategic Highways Agency reserve and Labour ministers have sat on their hands instead of putting measures in place to safeguard grit supplies,” she said.
The National Grid lifted its latest gas supply alert after the third warning in a week. Gordon Brown insisted that supplies were not running out and that reserves could be accessed in Norway and the Netherlands.
Experts predicted that up to 90,000 deaths could be linked to the cold weather this winter. The death rate in Britain is closely linked to the weather and for every 1C drop in temperature below 18C, the death rate increases by nearly 1.5 per cent.
Paul Wilkinson, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: “The British don’t seem to take the cold seriously enough, perhaps because we don’t usually get severe winters.”
A man walking his dogs died yesterday after falling through ice while trying to rescue them from the River Tees near Stockton-on-Tees.
A television executive was found dead under Penarth Pier near Cardiff on Saturday. Angharad Jones, 46, a friend of the actor Rhys Ifans, was found after going missing. She was the former commissioning editor of S4C, Channel 4 in Wales.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/weather/article6982935.ece
standeyo.com/NEWS/10_Food_Water/100112.UK.panic.buying.html
January 11, 2010
David Brown and Paul Simons
UK Times
Fears over supplies of fresh milk led to the Government relaxing restrictions on delivery drivers yesterday amid reports of panic buying.
Farmers were concerned that many thousands of gallons would have to be dumped because of the delays in milk tankers reaching dairies after the snow and ice.
The Government has also been forced to ration dwindling grit supplies for roads, despite forecasts that the worst of the snow is over and that the thaw will start this week.
Schools were urged to stay open this week so that pupils can take GCSE and A-level exams.
Ed Balls, the Schools Secretary, said that it was vital that head teachers “do everything possible” to stay open to avoid disrupting exams and lessons.
“I am sure that no head will take the decision to close lightly,” Mr Balls said. “It is important they take a balanced judgment and do not overstate the risks of playground slips or reduced supervision.”
Ofqual, the regulator of examinations in England, said that pupils could sit their exams in the summer or their schools could apply for special arrangements to be made to arrive at an estimated grade.
The Department for Transport relaxed EU limits on working hours for drivers of milk tankers and will today review similar changes for road gritters and animal feed suppliers.
Supermarkets in some areas are reported to have sold out of essentials including bread, milk and salt. Farmers were also said to be struggling to harvest vegetables in the freeze, which could lead to higher food prices.
Stephen Alambritis, chief spokesman for the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “Our members have had a run on vegetables and food. The replacements have been thin on the ground. There is concern that farmers have not been able to bring the harvest in for such items as potatoes, sprouts and cabbages, which reduces the amount available to stores — and pushes up prices.”
John Hirst, chief executive of the Met Office, defended the organisation’s inaccurate seasonal forecasts, which suggested that this would be a mild winter. “These things get misunderstood,” he said. “To be honest they are sold as probabilities and the seasonal forecasts, which are young and developing, aren’t part of our operational suite.”
Mr Hirst said that there would be less snow than expected over the next two days. Warm air would then push in from the South West but it was too difficult to predict whether that would bring rain or snow.
Dwindling grit supplies have meant that councils have been forced to cut use by a quarter. In Buckinghamshire thieves stole 15 tonnes of grit from a council depot and Torfaen council in South Wales said that it was not refilling grit bins as drivers in large vehicles and vans had been emptying them.
The Highways Agency stopped gritting the hard shoulders on motorways in England while councils have had to ensure that main routes — for public transport, outside hospitals, schools and supermarkets — are free of ice.
About 12,000 tonnes of salt destined for Germany was diverted to Britain after an emergency request from local authorities. Fifty trucks left the Ineos salt distribution facility in Runcorn, Cheshire, yesterday, with another 50 expected today. The salt will be supplied to the worst-affected areas, including Pembrokeshire in Wales, East Yorkshire, Fife, Gloucestershire, Bradford and Sheffield.
However, there was concern that London’s economy could suffer unless the capital received more grit. Colin Barrow, the leader of Westminster City Council, said: “The West End is the economic powerhouse of London and more than 300,000 jobs are dependent on it. Businesses have had a hard enough time as it is in the recession so their recovery must not be put in further jeopardy through the national rationing of salt stocks.”
Lord Adonis, the Transport Secretary, defended the rationing, and said that it would help to keep the major road network open. The Government’s “Salt Cell” will meet today to direct the distribution of new supplies.
Caroline Spelman, the Shadow Local Government Secretary, accused the Government of “rapidly losing control of the situation”.
“The Government has failed to build up a strategic Highways Agency reserve and Labour ministers have sat on their hands instead of putting measures in place to safeguard grit supplies,” she said.
The National Grid lifted its latest gas supply alert after the third warning in a week. Gordon Brown insisted that supplies were not running out and that reserves could be accessed in Norway and the Netherlands.
Experts predicted that up to 90,000 deaths could be linked to the cold weather this winter. The death rate in Britain is closely linked to the weather and for every 1C drop in temperature below 18C, the death rate increases by nearly 1.5 per cent.
Paul Wilkinson, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, said: “The British don’t seem to take the cold seriously enough, perhaps because we don’t usually get severe winters.”
A man walking his dogs died yesterday after falling through ice while trying to rescue them from the River Tees near Stockton-on-Tees.
A television executive was found dead under Penarth Pier near Cardiff on Saturday. Angharad Jones, 46, a friend of the actor Rhys Ifans, was found after going missing. She was the former commissioning editor of S4C, Channel 4 in Wales.
www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/weather/article6982935.ece