THE middle of summer seems a strange time to be worrying about what might happen in deep midwinter.

But it is this time of year when local authorities have to plan a strategy for dealing with snow and ice in December and January.

Every year the first flurry of snow brings a flurry of complaints about insufficient gritting on roads and pavements.

This winter it looks as if councils will also have to contend with compensation claims from people who reckon they have hurt themselves because of an accident caused by ice or snow.

Local authorities like Lancashire County Council and Blackburn with Darwen Council are already fighting a rising tide of claims because of alleged slips or trips on badly maintained footpaths and pavements.

But a change in the Highways Act will put councils under even more pressure by giving local authorities "a duty to ensure that safe passage along a highway is not endangered by snow or ice".

It's only fair that people who are injured due to the neglect of a local authority are given chance of redress. But whoever decided to implement this change in the law, making it easier for people to claim, obviously didn't think it through.

Yes, councils have a duty of care and should be called to account if they are not doing enough to make roads and footpaths safe. But with all the will in the world, no local authority has the money or resources - or control over weather - to make all routes safe under foot when really bad weather sets in.

In these times of compensation culture, we won't be surprised if all manner of spurious complaints start emptying council coffers.