PREPARATION is, as the saying goes, key. But is seems there is a real problem in East Lancashire with winter planning.

First the gritting of roads, while an improvement on 2009, has been questioned.

Residents, sending complaints to the Lancashire Telegraph’s Grit Watch, have reported empty grit bins and bus routes that have been treacherous.

Now it seems our health trusts have not got their orders spot on for the seasonal flu vaccine.

There has been a big campaign from health trusts, urging as many people as possible to get jab which, for the first, time, also protected against swine flu.

But now it seems East Lancashire has almost run out of the vaccine.

The single swine flu jab is being offered as an alternative, but its stocks are limited and rely on a fresh order coming through.

From the outside it seems there has been an element of complacency.

Early last week local health trusts reported that stocks were fine.

Since then concern over flu has increased, and there has clearly been a rush for the vaccine.

But, if health trusts wanted as many people as possible to be inoculated, it is ridiculous that we are running out as the illness takes hold.

And things may only get worse if the number of people with flu continues to increase.