Met Office says December was ‘almost certain’ to become the coldest since records began in 1910. Swathes of Britain skidded to a halt today as the big freeze returned - grounding flights, closing rail links and leaving traffic at a standstill.

And tonight the nation was braced for another 10in of snow and yet more sub-zero temperatures - with no let-up in the bitterly cold weather for at least a month, forecasters have warned.

The Arctic conditions are set to last through the Christmas and New Year bank holidays and beyond and as temperatures plummeted to -10c (14f) the Met Office said this December was ‘almost certain’ to become the coldest since records began in 1910.

The latest snowfall carpeted large swathes of Britain today - with up to 5in falling in places - paralysing roads and rail, and forcing airports and schools to close.

Forecasters warned the worst was still to come over the next 24 hours as the heaviest December snowfall for 30 years tightened its grip on the nation once more.

The South is expected to be worst hit with up to 10in falling during the course of tomorrow. By the start of next week temperatures are set to fall to as low as -15c (5f).

Met Office forecaster Barry Gromett said the average mean temperature for the first two weeks of this month was -0.7c.

The coldest ever average for this time of year - recorded in December 1981 - was 0.2c.

He said: ‘A significant amount of snow will fall over the next 24 hours, particularly across southern England.

‘Further snow showers are likely to hit Wales and the west before moving eastwards on Sunday.

‘It is going to remain very cold right through to the middle of next week with widespread overnight frosts and ice.

‘Temperatures are likely to drop into the minus teens in places, with towns and cities as cold as -8c (18f).

‘It’s going to stay like this throughout Christmas and New Year, but by the middle of next month things will slowly return to normal and we could perhaps see the beginning of the end.

‘Nevertheless, this December is almost certainly going to become the coldest since records began in 1910. It’s already a lot colder than the previous record which was set in 1981.’ ...

Douglas McWilliams, chief executive of the Centre for Economics and Business Research, said the prolonged freeze could also lead to up to 1,000 businesses going bankrupt.

Many shoppers would be forced to stay at home because of treacherous roads, he added.

There are also concerns that heating oil - used by around two million homes, schools and hospitals - are nearing ‘crisis levels’. The Government is said to be considering rationing.

In a further development, the NHS issued an urgent appeal for blood donors as stocks ran low.