France limits outdoor gatherings to six as Covid infections rise

More areas of the country get mobility restrictions while Hungary and Poland face crises

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Concern is mounting among health experts that France is not doing enough to curb a rise in coronavirus infections, particularly among younger people, as a third wave fuelled by the B117 variant first detected in the UK accelerates across Europe.

Announcing 45,000 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours, the French health minister, Olivier Veran, on Thursday banned outdoor gatherings of more than six people and added three more departements, including the area around Lyon, to 16 already placed under tougher mobility restrictions.