France reports over 100,000 daily Covid cases for first time

Government considering new restriction amid Omicron surge

Covid infections in France hit six figures Saturday, health officials recording 104,611 cases over the previous 24 hours, the third consecutive day the numbers have been record highs.

The latest figures, from France's public health agency, come ahead of a video-conference meeting Monday in which President Emmanuel Macron and key members of his government will discuss new Covid safety measures.

Officials are concerned about the effect of the rapid spread of the Omicron variant.

Already on Friday, the health authority recommended adults receive a booster jab three months after their initial vaccination.

Now the government is moving to make the health pass issued to the vaccinated valid only if people accept the booster jab.

The pass is required for access to cafes, restaurants and public spaces, as well as for international travel.

Coronavirus in Europe - in pictures

• 

  A health centre employee performs a coronavirus test in the Kurfuerstendamm shopping street in Berlin, Germany. AP Photo

• 

  People present their vaccination status as they queue in front of the famous department store 'KaDeWe' in Berlin. AP Photo

• 

  A coffin which contains a person who died with the coronavirus, and is labelled "Covid-19", in a crematorium's cold room in Meissen, Germany. AP Photo

• 

  A quiet retail precinct during the introduction of lockdown measures in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Bloomberg

• 

  A vast Covid-19 vaccination centre set up inside the France's national Velodrome near Paris. EPA

• 

  A medical technician administers nasal swabs at a mobile testing site in Paris. AP Photo

• 

  Children are vaccinated at a centre in Selestat, eastern France. AP Photo

• 

  People queue up outside a pharmacy to have swab tests in Turin, Italy. EPA

• 

  A crowd wearing face masks in downtown Madrid, Spain. AP Photo

• 

  Nurses take care of a Covid-19 patient at the Basurto Hospital in Bilbao, Spain. EPA

Some regions have already enacted their own safety measures.

At the end of last month, for example, officials in Savoie reintroduced the compulsory wearing of masks, not just in indoor public spaces, but outdoors too -- a move just adopted in neighbouring Italy.

The latest figures mark a dramatic rise since the beginning of the month: on December 4, the numbers broke 50,000 for the first time before rising steadily.

To date, France has recorded 122,546 deaths from the coronavirus. So far, 76.5 per cent of the population is fully vaccinated.