Morning:
14°c
London may look attractive carpeted in the heaviest snow for 18 years but there is mounting anger over the near-collapse of the city's transport system. There are few buses and trains, while large sections of the Tube network are suspended or subject to severe delays; airports are shut down.
Granted, snow this deep falls rarely, and the safety of the travelling public must be paramount. But we have had at least three days' warning from forecasters about the likelihood of heavy snow, while the Meteorological Office says it warned councils as early as last Wednesday of the possibility of extreme weather. Nothing has ever shut down London's bus network so completely for so long - not even the Blitz or the July 2005 bomb attacks. Why did last night's snow do so?
The blame for the bus shutdown appears to lie mainly with councils, who failed to grit or clear roads properly, despite the warnings; their lacklustre showing today drew an angry reaction from the emergency services. Belatedly, they have workers out gritting today. While the Highways Agency may have devoted significant manpower to gritting the motorways but in the centre of London, many roads are only passable because of the persistence of motorists forging through snow early in the morning. But Transport for London also appears to have been ill-prepared. It has blamed the sheer weight of snow, but many Tube passengers will wonder why lines which run much of their length underground - including the Circle and Hammersmith & City lines - could not have been kept clear.
This is a time when all the transport services and local authorities needed efficiency and advance planning. It may not be possible for us to spend enormous sums of the kind of equipment to clear roads used in countries where heavy snow is commonplace but the cost to the economy when transport is all but suspended is also very great. There is more snow to come: it's time to do better.
Gordon and China
GORDON Brown's meeting with the Chinese premier, Wen Jiabao, is an occasion for a meeting of like minds on at least one subject. Mr Jiabao's preoccupation is with stemming the protectionist sentiment that has become disturbingly prevalent in Western economies during the downturn. Mr Brown, faced with angry protests at the employment of foreign workers during a time of rising unemployment, has, for his part, firmly rejected the attractions of such a direction; he is emphatic that the free movement of labour and goods is ultimately in everyone's interests. Beyond that, Mr Brown, like other Europeans, has an interest in China encouraging greater spending - an end that may be assisted if the Chinese themselves have greater security in old age and less incentive to save for the future.
The premier's visit has been punctuated by vociferous protests from human-rights groups, particularly on Tibet. The Prime Minister will not be voicing public criticisms of China, though we are assured he will raise concerns in private. He must do so. The situation in Tibet cannot be sidelined for the duration of the economic downturn, nor can the plight of other critics of the regime. We may need China but that does not dispel the need to remain frank and vigilant about its dark human rights record.
Top Brit flicks
LAST night the Evening Standard British film awards 2008 celebrated an extraordinary year for our film industry. From the raw winner of best film, Hunger, through to awards for Tilda Swinton (best actor, in Julia) and Stephen Daldry (best director, The Reader), our winners show that British film still manages to punch well above its weight. Our awards are the only ones to honour solely British films - but talent like this deserves to triumph in Hollywood's back yard: now on to the Oscars.
Reader views (5)
TFL were terribly prepared but at the same time aren't we all a bit happy that we got a day to play with our kids in the snow? But also, there are talks of spendin billions on a new system so we can cope with snow. Now I don't know about you but I do not want to fund a scheme which will be put into action once every decade or so - it's just ridiculous. One day a year is better than spending money un-necessarily. However, I do agree that we should have been better prepared. My son's school was unable to put the message that school was closed on the website because the technician couldn't get into work. How pathetic is that?
- Lisa, London, UK
I left Basingstoke this morning at 8.30 and came back at 3 pm, all with a reasonable service and effort by South West Trains.Bravo! What on earth happened in London? No tubes and especially worrying no buses and even taxis weren't allowed into Waterloo station so I walked to my destination. What an appallingly poor show by London Transport. Especially at this present time we really needed a show of determination and solidarity in our national character. What a total dissapointment. We were all given ample warning of the bad weather conditions.
Shame on you Tranport for London!
- Hugh Seenan, Basingstoke
Everyone is comparing the weather now to that in 1991. In 1991 the buses ran through the snow. The only difference since then is the privatisation of the bus and many other council services. The shambles illustrates clearly how wrong is the privatisation of the public sevices - taxpayers have to pay far more money for far less service.
- Royston, london
The most idiotic local government response to the snow I've encountered today is Camden council closing its parks. At 8.30 am this morning a Camden official (who could otherwise have been gritting the ungritted pavements) was ordering people out of Waterlow Park in Highgate for 'health and safety' reasons. It seems unlikely that anyone could have missed the fact that it has snowed. Anybody with an iota of common sense knows to take care not to slip. I'm paying thousands in council tax for these idiots to waste their time shutting the parks, making life miserable for all the children who are off school. Meanwhile pensioners break their hips on the snow-covered pavements. No wonder our children are the most miserable in Europe - needlessly overprotected by moronic councillors scared of being sued by ambulance-chasing lawyers, but denied harmless outdoor fun. Meanwhile some Camden council jobsworth is probably in a warm office pocketing an ill-deserved salary crafting yet another anti-obesity initiative. You couldn't make it up!
- Jas, Camden, London, UK
Do you remember the open lorries with two men in the back throwing sand and grit on the road. All clear next day. The wonders of modern snow clearing take too long.
- Simon Bucharest, Bucharest, Romania
