Companies should "look kindly" on employees who were unable to travel to work during last week's severe weather, a Government minister has said.

Kit Malthouse, a Work and Pensions minster, was speaking to the Daily Telegraph after reports of people being threatened with a loss of pay for not making it to work as the Beast from the East gripped the country.

His call echoes that of Scotland's Transport Minister Humza Yousaf, who said he would be "extremely disappointed" if employers docked the wages of those who did not travel during the red weather warning.

READ MORE: 'Unacceptable' for employers to dock pay during severe weather

Mr Malthouse told the paper: "I'm quite sure that employers will look kindly on those who were snowed in and I know the hard working British workforce will want to make up the time too."

Public transport was suspended and people were told not to drive from Wednesday afternoon into Thursday morning across the central belt of Scotland, with the travel network largely paralysed until the end of the week due to heavy snow.

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Mr Yousaf told BBC Sunday Politics Scotland: "Frankly I'd be extremely disappointed if employers chose to dock wages for somebody because they couldn't travel during the red weather warning.

"I've had a number of emails from individuals that they were facing disciplinary or potential docking of wages.

"Now that's just simply not an acceptable situation when the government and police and other agencies joined together to give very crisp, very clear advice it's not for our own good, it's for the safety of the public."