the corner office

Oxfordshire County Council leader Keith Mitchell:

I have to ask what has happened to the British spirit that defeated Hitler and yet quails at a little snow?

If every householder and every shopkeeper took some salt and a shovel and cleared the area of pavement in front of their home or shop, we might have regained some of the spirit that has kept this island free for 1,000 years.

but from the same article:

Julian Freeland, a partner at Bicester-based HMG Law, said anyone who cleared pavements of ice could be liable for a personal injury claim if somebody slipped on the treated area.

Q.E.D.

Update: apparently a misconception (see #4), but I think the fact that a lawyer initially said it and that it was widely reported still proves the point, or a slightly different point which boils down to the same thing.