TOP HEADLINES 

• Delayed second and third doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine boost immunity against COVID-19, a study by Oxford University, which developed the jab with the British-Swedish firm, shows.

• The UK recorded 22,868 new coronavirus infections on Monday, up from 14,876 a day earlier. And three deaths – fewer than the 11 reported on Sunday. 

• Sweden will ease many of its restrictions aimed at slowing the spread of the COVID-19 on July 1, allowing larger crowds at stadiums and restaurants, the minister of health said.

• A scaled-back version of the world's biggest mobile telecommunications fair got under way in Barcelona under tight virus controls, with top firms avoiding an in-person presence after the pandemic derailed last year's edition. 

• Saint Petersburg in Russia posted record deaths on Monday amid a worrying spread of the Delta variant. The city is preparing to host a Euro 2020 quarter-final football match.

• From Monday, people will have to work from home in Moscow – the epicenter of Russia's outbreak – with exceptions for vaccinated employees. Russia has recorded an explosion of new cases in the past two weeks. 

• All of Italy became a mask-free, "low-risk" zone for coronavirus on Monday, marking a dramatic milestone for the first European country to be hit by the global pandemic in February 2020.

• Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel has been placed in isolation for 10 days after testing positive. 

• The University of Oxford announced it had started injecting volunteers with a vaccine developed with AstraZeneca against the Beta variant of the virus in clinical trials to measure its effectiveness. 

• Germany's states will discuss with Angela Merkel's chancellery testing and quarantine restrictions for returning travelers amid concern over the spread of the more contagious Delta variant.

• Britain's senior military commanders and the defense secretary are self-isolating after the head of the armed forces tested positive. Ben Wallace, secretary of defense and the heads of the Navy, the Royal Air Force and Strategic Command were all ordered to isolate for 10 days last week. 

• Spain will demand a negative test or proof of vaccination from British tourists who want to enter Mallorca, Ibiza and other Balearic Islands, Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said. "What we are going to do is apply to British tourists who go to the Balearic Islands the same requirements we make of other European citizens," he said.

• Ukraine reported nine deaths from COVID-19 over the past 24 hours, the lowest daily total since July 19, health ministry data showed on Monday. The country has been seeing a sharp drop in new infections and earlier this month lifted many domestic restrictions, while extending some until August 31.

ACROSS EUROPE 

Penelope Liersch in Budapest

Hungary will donate an extra 100,000 doses of the COVID-19 vaccine to  Czechia later this week. Czech Prime Minister Andrej Babis announced late Sunday that the doses will arrive, Thursday, with the country expected to receive total shipments of 1.1 million doses over the next week. 

Hungary sent 41,000 vaccines to its neighbor earlier this month after the country suffered supply issues due to European Union (EU) leaders disagreeing with allocating an extra ten million vaccine doses within the bloc. Serbia also donated doses at the same time.

Czechia's COVID-19 reproduction number has risen slightly in the last week from 0.7 to 0.8. The slight increase in infection data is attributed to the Delta variant. The mutation has been confirmed in seven regions. The Prime Minister has urged people to get vaccinated, particularly now that the Delta variant is in the community.

Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

The UK government has  ruled out lifting the country's final COVID-19 lockdown restrictions two weeks early on July 5.

New Health Secretary Sajid Javid has told parliament today the relaxation of measures would not be brought forward, but he could see no reason to extend restrictions beyond the existing end date of July 19. Cases in the UK are still rising, driven by the Delta variant.

Meanwhile, British travelers heading to Portugal from Monday who have not had two doses of vaccine will need to quarantine for 14 days on arrival. Several EU countries are considering tighter rules for UK visitors.

Toni Waterman in Bari, Italy

As of Monday, all regions of Italy have are now "white zones," meaning COVID-19 restrictions have been relaxed. The most significant difference is in the number of guests allowed at home. The four-person limit has been scrapped, although parties and large gatherings are still banned.

Wearing a mask outdoors is also no longer compulsory unless a person is in a stadium, queue, market, or other busy spaces. The easing comes as COVID-19 infections continue their steady decline, now below 1,000 a day. Although health officials have raised the alarm over a surge in the Delta and Kappa variants over the past month. 

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CGTN Europe has been providing in-depth coverage of the novel coronavirus story as it has unfolded.