UK weather: Heavy rain and strong winds to soak Britain on election day

Unsettled conditions are expected to continue well throughout this week

Voters can expect to be soaked on their way to the polls on Thursday as bands of heavy rain and wind move across the UK this week.

Yellow weather warnings for rain, ice, and wind are in place for most of Scotland and England, and eastern parts of Northern Ireland, on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Conditions in the south are dry and cold on Tuesday, but will become much wetter and windier as the week goes on.

Very strong winds of up to 50mph in Scotland have already wreaked havoc, blowing over two lorries and causing three to crash.

Edinburgh Castle and Christmas market were both closed due to the severe weather.

Met Office spokesperson Grahame Madge told The Independent: “We’re expecting a very unsettled period, with wet conditions today and strong winds locally, spreading eastwards.

“Wintry showers on higher ground in Scotland and northern parts of England could bring snow, and there is a risk of hail and thunder, but only on higher ground.”

There will be a short reprieve from the stormy weather on Tuesday night, with mostly clear skies overnight, but the showers will return on Wednesday, most frequently over northern and western UK.

Mr Madge noted that there is little chance of snow falling on lower ground, but there will be blustery showers and patches of ice as temperatures drop.

Election day will be cloudy and rainy for most of the UK, although there will be some dry periods between showers, he said.

“It will be very wet mainly in southern parts of England on Thursday,” he said. “As we move into Friday and the weekend, there is potential for a low-pressure system to bring strong winds across the UK, from Cornwall all the way up to Scotland.”

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (Sepa) and the Environment Agency have both put up flood warnings across the country.

Sepa said: "A band of persistent and heavy rain is again affecting large parts of western, southern, and central Scotland. This is currently causing surface water flooding, affecting the transport network.

"Localised flooding is also possible from rivers responding to the heavy rainfall throughout the day. Typical impacts could include localised flooding of low-lying land, roads, and individual properties, and disruption to travel."