Exceptional winter weather conditions this past week brought chaos to much of the country's transport infrastructure. My journeys to and from Westminster took twice as long, but I did at least get through, unlike some in parts of the country which suffered worse than we did.

Our road and rail networks struggle to cope with a few inches of snow. But other countries in Europe are better prepared, perhaps because they are more used to wintry weather and commit more funds for the right equipment.

The AA warned last week that a national shortage of grit is putting lives at risk on Britain's snow covered roads.

Adequate salt supplies has been the main issue for local authorities in danger of running out. Some councils have used almost their entire winter supply in less than a week. Baldwins in Wolverhampton, the biggest supplier in the West Midlands, completely ran out. Shropshire County Council used 2,000 tonnes last week, a quarter of its typical annual use. It provided another 500 tonnes to Telford & Wrekin and has supplies hopefully to last this week. But shortages elsewhere left much of Britain woefully unprepared for the extended cold snap.

The British Carrot Growers' Association said last week that sales of carrots rose for children to decorate snowmen! While prolonged snow on the ground has given great fun for many children, it has proved highly disruptive to grown ups. Some have calculated the cost to the economy as high as £3 billion.

If global warming means we can expect more extreme weather events in winter and summer, we must as a nation be better prepared for snow.