TOP HEADLINES

• The UK has become the first country in Europe to surpass 60,000 coronavirus deaths. A further 414 deaths within 28 days of a positive test were recorded, taking the country's overall death toll to 60,113. 

• Sweden's high schools will close for a month and students will be taking classes online, announced the country's prime minister Stefan Lofven, as cases soar in the country. "This is to create a slowing effect on the spread of infection," the leader told a press conference. As when high schools were closed in the country from mid-March to mid-June, nurseries and primary schools will remain open. 

• Finland's government says it has agreed to a national strategy for COVID-19 vaccinations, planning to give them to everyone and to start by vaccinating selected healthcare staff from January onwards. 

• Hungary reported 182 new COVID-19 deaths on Thursday, which is the country's highest death toll since the start of the pandemic, according to government data. 

• Russia recorded a record 28,145 new coronavirus cases, reporting 554 deaths in the past 24 hours, pushing its national death toll to 41,607. 

• Former president of France, Valery Giscard d'Estaing, died on Wednesday from COVID-19-linked complications aged 94. He was admitted to hospital in September with respiratory problems, he recovered but then was readmitted in mid-November. "In accordance with his wishes, his funeral will take place in the strictest family intimacy," the Foundation Valery Giscard d'Estaing said on Twitter.

• Germany is to extend restrictive measures designed to stem a tide of new COVID-19 infections until January 10, said Angela Merkel after talks with state leaders. The measures were supposed to have finished on December 20 and include keeping restaurants and hotels shut and limiting private gatherings to five people from two households.

• Regional authorities and the Spanish government came to agreement on Wednesday that a maximum of 10 people per household will be allowed to gather for the Christmas and New Year holidays to avoid spreading the coronavirus, said health minister Salvador Illa. The agreement applies to celebrations on Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year's Eve and New Year's Day – allowing a slight relaxation of the rule that currently permits gatherings of six people. 

• Italians will not be able to attend midnight mass or move between regions over the Christmas period, said a top health ministry official. In recent weeks, Italy has been reporting more daily COVID-19 fatalities than any other European nation. Junior health minister Sandra Zampa said Christmas Eve mass must end by around 8:30 p.m. so worshippers can return home before a 10 p.m. curfew. People have also been told not to invite non-family members home for Christmas lunch or similar celebrations.

• England's deputy chief medical officer says medicine regulators in other countries, especially in the U.S., are not far behind the decision of Britain's regulators to authorize Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine.

• German economy minister Peter Altmaier has warned that the country's generous support for firms affected by the pandemic could not go on "endlessly" as calls grow louder for a return more fiscal prudence. Berlin has pledged more than a trillion dollars in aid to shield German workers and companies, including through subsidised reduced-time work schemes. 

• Random border checks will be imposed to stop French holidaymakers going to ski in neighboring Switzerland, said french Prime Minister Jean Castex. France, Germany and Italy are all shutting down their ski lifts over the Christmas period to prevent the spread of COVID-19 but the Swiss slopes are already open for the ski season.

ACROSS EUROPE

Paul Barber in London

Doses of the Pfizer-BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine could start arriving in the UK as soon as Thursday after the country became the world's first to give regulatory approval to the jab.

Vaccinations for the most vulnerable groups are due to start next week but Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned of "immense logistical challenges," with the vaccine needing to be stored at extremely low temperatures.

Meanwhile, the government has announced that school students sitting national exams next summer will be awarded more generous grades and be given advance notice of test topics. They will also be allowed study aids in exams to make up for the disruption they have endured amid the pandemic.

Toni Waterman in Brussels 

Prime Minister Alexander de Croo has announced Belgium will start administering COVID-19 vaccines on January 5 if the drugs regulator signs off on the jab.

The European Medicines Agency said it would make a decision on the Pfizer-BioNTech jab by December 29. 

Exact details about how the vaccine strategy will be carried out and which groups will be first in line are still awaiting approval. The plan must be approved not only at the national level but also at the local level. 

But even when the program starts, De Croo has warned it will take time to inoculate all 11.5 million residents, which means safety measures will need to remain in place for a while yet. 

Rahul Pathak in Madrid

The Spanish government is set to have its first budget approved since 2018. The chamber of deputies is due to vote on the budget today, with the country's Senate likely to give final approval before the end of the year. 

The passing of the 2021 budget has been helped by funds from EU recovery fund. Spain is due to receive approximately $169 billion from the European Union to help lift the country out of its coronavirus-driven economic slump

Spain's economy has been the EU's worst hit by the pandemic. It is due to run the biggest budget deficit as a percentage of GDP at 12.2 percent.

Linda Kennedy in Budapest 

Security guards are officially allowed to ask to see identity cards to confirm a person is old enough to be shopping, according to official police advice. 

Only those aged over 65 are permitted in grocery stores and pharmacies between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. on weekday mornings, under recently introduced rules to protect elderly people. If the shopper refuses to do show ID, they can be barred.  

The latest official figures show 4,136 new cases over the past 24 hours and 165 deaths.

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