MANCHESTER: Freezing temperatures and heavy snow gripped northern England and Scotland Tuesday, stopping transport links and major football fixtures and closing three airports and hundreds of schools. Britain brought in extra gas supplies from continental Europe to meet a 30 percent rise on normal seasonal use, the BBC reported. Prime Minister Gordon Brown said: “There are always difficulties when we have a long spell of bad weather.” In northwest England, heavy snow blocked roads and triggered accidents while Manchester and Liverpool airports reopened after closing. One truck driver was killed in a motorway collision in Manchester. The snow wiped out both League Cup semi-final first legs, with Wednesday’s Manchester derby between City and United and Blackburn’s match against visitors Aston Villa postponed.