TOP HEADLINES

· Denmark has become the first country in the world to permanently stop using AstraZeneca's Vaxzevria jab in its vaccination program, following news of its possible link to very rare blood clot cases, health authorities said.

· EU countries have formally agreed to launch coronavirus travel passes in a bid to reopen tourism this summer, with the details to be negotiated in May, two diplomatic sources told Reuters. The certificates will allow those vaccinated, recovering from the virus or with negative test results to travel more easily in the bloc.

· Europe's drug regulator is expected to make a recommendation on Johnson & Johnson's vaccine next week after U.S. health agencies paused the jab's use after reports of rare disorder involving blood clots. For now, the European Medicines Agency says its benefits outweigh the risks of side effects, but Sweden, Greece and Italy have are pausing its use.

· The suspension of Johnson & Johnson's vaccine could slow down the EU's vaccination roll-out by more than two months, analytics company Airfinity has forecast, potentially pushing back the vaccination of 75 percent of the bloc's population to December.

· Greece is set to lift its quarantine rule for more travelers from next week, allowing in people from the EU and five other countries if they have been vaccinated or provide a negative test.

· By the time travel restarts for Britons, expected to be from May 17, most European countries should be on the UK's "green list" for travel, easyJet's CEO Johan Lundgren has said. However, the UK's aviation minister said it was too early to say which countries would join the list.

· In the first study to compare immune reactions to both Pfizer's and AstraZeneca's Vaxzevria vaccines, UK scientists have found largely similar antibody responses to the jabs in people aged over 80.

· Switzerland will allow restaurants and outdoor terraces to reopen from next week, as well as sports events attended by audiences. Cinemas, theaters and concert venues can readmit guests from April 19, although visitors will have to wear masks.

· Sweden's infection rate is currently the second highest in Europe after landlocked San Marino, with the lockdown-shy country's top epidemiologist saying there were "no signs of a decrease."

· Denmark is set to open its borders to travelers coming from EU and Schengen Area countries if they have been vaccinated from May 1, the foreign ministry has announced, adding that its borders would gradually start reopening from April 21. There are also reports Denmark could permanently discontinue AstraZeneca's Vaxzevria vaccine.

· The European Commission is seeking clarification from Johnson & Johnson about its "completely unexpected" announcement of delays to deliveries of vaccines to the EU.

· People in Germany aged under 60 who have had a first dose of AstraZeneca's Vaxzevria jab will get a different jab for their second dose, federal and regional health ministers have agreed. Finland is following suite for people aged under 65.

· Romania's Health Minister Vlad Voiculescu has been fired for his handling of the pandemic, a decision that could endanger the center-right coalition government.

· Hungary will likely reopen restaurant terraces next week, once 3.5 million people have been vaccinated, prime minister Viktor Orban has said. He added that schools could be reopened gradually from Monday.
 

AROUND EUROPE 

Ross Cullen in Paris

President Emmanuel Macron will chair a meeting with senior ministers on April 15 to discuss plans to reopen the country from mid-May. Before the end of the month, the leader will make another address to the nation on the subject of how and when to end the current lockdown, which is in place nationwide.

Speaking to French breakfast media, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said the furlough and tax waiver funds will be maintained until the end of the pandemic. On the topic of ending lockdown, he added: "We do not want to reopen the economy just to have to reclose shortly after."

Separately, all flights from Brazil, the country with the second-highest number of coronavirus deaths in the world after the U.S., have been suspended, a move Le Maire said was "wise" to protect the public.

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Trent Murray in Frankfurt

The latest data from Germany's Robert Koch Institute show there have been 21,693 new coronavirus cases recorded. That's a jump of more than 100 percent compared with last week, showing the third wave is picking up steam. 

Against that backdrop, Chancellor Angela Merkel's government is working to push new pandemic laws through parliament in order to introduce new nationwide lockdowns. 

More than 500,000 vaccines were administered yesterday, with 16.9 percent of Germany's population now having received at least one dose.

Penelope Liersch in Budapest

More than 3 million people have received at least one dose of a vaccine in Hungary, with more than 1.2 million getting a second dose. More than 10,000 patients remain in hospital and more than 1,200 require ventilation. However, these numbers are slowly decreasing. In the past 24 hours, 285 people passed away from the virus.

In Slovakia, the government has announced an easing of restrictions from Monday with non-essential shops and services to reopen along with churches, museums, swimming pools and hotels in a reduced capacity. Restaurants will not be allowed to open and in most cases people will need a negative test from the past seven days to enter shops, churches and other buildings. 

Toni Waterman in Brussels

Belgium's government meets on Wednesday to discuss a possible – and quite limited – easing of COVID-19 restrictions. School reopenings and lifting a ban on all non-essential travel is expected to be approved for April 19. 

The so-called Consultation Committee is also expected to make a decision on whether close-contact professions such as hairdressers can reopen as planned on April 26. 

The big unknown is whether cafes and restaurants will get the go-ahead to reopen on May 1, as originally planned. The government is coming under increasing pressure to allow the sector, shuttered for nearly six months, to fling open the doors. 

But the government finds itself between a rock and a hard place. The country's reproduction rate jumped back above 1.0 on Tuesday, meaning the spread of the virus is once again accelerating and only 16.4 percent of the population has received a first dose of a vaccine. 

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