Scotland to be hit by Arctic blast

Scotland is to be hit with a blast of snow from the Arctic next week.

Large parts of the country will see widespread snowfall as the Met Office issued two weather warnings over Sunday, Monday and Tuesday.

The first warning covering the north of Scotland comes into force at 4pm on Sunday and continues to 11am on Monday.

A second alert starts at 10am on Monday and covers Glasgow, Edinburgh, Stirling, and much of the south of Scotland.

It is in effect until 10am on Tuesday.

The Met Office warned there is a chance that some rural communities could become cut off and vehicles could be stranded.

The north of the country including Aberdeenshire, Moray and the Highlands showers will turn increasingly wintry with hail, sleet and snow.

Meteorologists forecast around five to 10cm is possible on high ground above 300 metres by Monday morning.

On Monday and Tuesday, areas such as Strathclyde, Central, Tayside and Fife as well as the Borders and Dumfries and Galloway will be subject to as much as 15 to 20cm above.

Power cuts and disruption to travel may occur across the country next week, the Met Office has warned.