UK Weather: Snow Forecast For Weekend With Temperatures Set To Drop (PICTURES)

Britain Braces For The Big Freeze
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Britain is bracing for a blast of cold weather, with snow forecast in some areas and temperatures are expected to drop everywhere over the weekend.

Wintry showers are expected in Scotland and down the east coast.

Temperatures in 2013 have been mild so far - they were still as high as 9C (48F) in Cornwall yesterday - but the mercury is expected to plummet over the next few days.

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A light covering of snow on the Northumberland border

Alexi Boothman, a forecaster with MeteoGroup, the weather division of the Press Association, said: "Temperatures will fall over the weekend, and in many places, even during the daytime, we won't see more than a degree or two above zero.

"From overnight tonight we can expect to see wintry showers arriving in parts of Scotland and north east England, driven by cold easterly winds, and also down the east coast as far as East Anglia.

"There may also be some snow showers in Wales."

The Highways Agency said it was "well prepared" for winter conditions.

A spokeswoman said: "We have a fleet of 500 state-of-the-art winter vehicles on stand-by, supported by tried and tested winter resilience plans.

"We have reviewed salt stock levels and taken action where needed to enhance our resilience and we have again established a reserve salt stock to help ensure that there is enough salt to deal with severe winter.

"Our roads will be treated whenever there is a risk of ice or snow.

"However, even when roads have been treated, drivers should still take care, especially on stretches where the local road layout or landscape means there could be a greater risk of ice forming."