Portugal limits gatherings to 10 people and imposes drinking curbs; Mexico signs agreement for Sputnik V vaccine; UK records over 2,000 infections for fifth day in a row
- Central Europe faces worse second wave after avoiding worst of first
- UK looks to Belgium for Covid inspiration despite infections rise
- Trump admits playing down virus as total deaths exceed 900,000
- AstraZeneca chief claims vaccine still possible this year
7.39pm BST
France recorded almost 10,000 new Covid-19 infections on Thursday, its highest ever total in a single day, Reuters reports.
The country reported 9,843 new confirmed cases, an increase of almost 900 on the previous day, when 8,975 infections were announced.
This comes as the government prepares for a Friday cabinet meeting that may end in new local lockdowns being introduced.
7.22pm BST
The United Nations has called for an immediate “quantum leap” in funding for global programmes developing coronavirus treatments and vaccine candidates.
The UN secretary-general, Antonio Guterres, urged countries to find $15bn over the next three months to fund the ACT-Accelerator programme, a global scheme led by the World Health Organization.
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