Weather improves for final Christmas travel dash

Weather conditions are improving across the UK ahead of the final Christmas travel rush and last-minute shopping dash.

All weather warnings which had been in place have now been lifted, after the weekend saw strong winds cause flight cancellations and widespread rail delays.

The disruption included Belfast City Airport shutting its runway on Sunday after a plane was damaged in a "hard landing". The runway reopened on Monday morning.

The Met Office has forecast a "grey Christmas" with "extremely mild" temperatures for most in the coming days - ruling out any prospect of a white Christmas for the majority of the country.

It comes after parts of the UK were hit by chilly temperatures and 50-60mph (80-97km/h) winds on Saturday and Sunday - with the strongest gust recorded in South Uist on the Western Isles clocking in at 82mph.

But the travel picture looks far more straightforward for those making journeys today or on Tuesday.

While Heathrow Airport was forced to cancel around 100 flights on Sunday due to the conditions, a spokesperson said it was "business as usual" on Monday.

And National Rail was not reporting any widespread issues on Monday, though there were some isolated problems, external.

Ferry customers are still being warned of ongoing disruption on some routes operating from Scotland and Northern Ireland.

While driving conditions have improved, congestion is likely.

Last week, the RAC predicted a record 29 million separate road journeys in the run-up to Christmas - with almost 7 million over the next two days alone.

The president of the AA, Edmund King, said the remainder of journeys during the festive period should run relatively smoothly, with hold-ups in the "usual hotspots", such as the M25, M1 and M6.

Among the motorists were those heading to supermarkets on Monday, which was expected to be the biggest food shopping day of the year so far, according to retail analyst Catherine Shuttleworth.

She said high street retailers had prepared for a "busy day", while supermarkets looked to cash in on people being more "cautious" about eating out ahead of Christmas due to the demands on household budgets.

Temperatures are expected to improve in the final run-up to Christmas Day, with sunshine forecast in some areas, according to forecasters at BBC Weather.

Northern Ireland and western Scotland will see some patchy rain, which will make its way into western parts of England and Wales on Monday afternoon. There is a chance of some snow over the Scottish Hills and the Pennines.

Christmas Eve will predominately see cloudy skies but is on course to be one of the mildest on record. Temperatures are forecast to hit an average of 12C (54F) or 13C, while Christmas Day is expected to be 11C or 12C.