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TOP HEADLINES:

The German state of Bavaria has canceled its world-renowned **Oktoberfest **eventamid fear of the virus.
France has halted all international flights from outside the Schengen zone, saysthe country's transport minister Elisabeth Borne.
Italy is to unveil a plan to ease its lockdownmeasures startingfrom 4 May**.**
The UK's Office for National Statistics has released a report saying the COVID-19 death toll in England and Wales up to 10 April was up to 41 percent higher than government data first suggested.
World HealthOrganization Director-General Tedros Ghebreyesus Adhanom has warned the**"worst is still ahead of us,"** despite some countries easing restrictive measures.

- For the first time the number of people infected by COVID-19 in Italy fell, on Monday by 20. Italy reported 454 new deaths, bringing the death toll to 24,114.

The UK government is pursuing "every possible option"** to secure more Personal Protective Equipment,** but admitted thesituation was"very challenging" due to a world shortage.
Amazon has said its six warehouses in France will remain closed until at least Wednesday after a row over sanitary conditions continues.
Denmark will not allow public gatherings of more than 500 people until at least 1 September.
Serbia's government has shortened the country's night curfew by one hour and eased the 24-hour lockdown for people aged 65 and over , allowing them to leave their homes for 30 minutes on three days a week.
Russia recorded 5,642 new confirmed cases in the past 24 hours , bringing the nationwide tally to 52,763. The country's death toll now stands at456.

One of the worlds biggest festivals, Oktoberfest has been cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. /AP

ACROSS EUROPE:

By Ross Cullen in Paris

The coronavirus pandemic has now killed more people in France than "any seasonal flu epidemic, even the most severe, even the longest," according to the director-general of public health in France, who delivers the daily update on the disease.

In passing the mark of 20,000 deaths, the outbreak is also more deadly than the heatwave of 2003. Separately, traces of this coronavirus have been found in water in Paris, according to reports from AFP, which says minute traces of COVID-19 were discovered in the non-drinking water network.

Municipal services in the French capital have suspended the use of this water for street cleaning and say there is no danger to the drinking water supply for the city.

By Isobel Ewing in Budapest

The Hungarian government has made changes to its much-touted COVID-19 financial bailout package, after affiliates of large multinational companies expressed disappointment at its inadequacy.

Hungary's secretary for economic strategy and regulation, László György, announced that workers will be able to receive a wage supplement as long as they work at least two hours a day.

In the initial package, workers were only eligible if they worked "reduced hours," which was defined as at least four hours a day.

Wage support covers those people teleworking and working from home, temporary employment agencies, and associations and NGOs that do not benefit from the budget.

According to EU rules, those who receive wage subsidies from EU funds cannot receive state wage subsidies either.

György said the government also plans to simplify the cumbersome bureaucratic application process to apply for the subsidy.

Businesses can apply for a two-year loan to retain jobs for nine months with an interest rate of only 0.1 percent.

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By Natalie Carney in Munich

Germany's easing of COVID-19 restrictive measures have begun following an announcement by the country's center for disease control that the reproduction rate in the county has dropped below one, meaning that fewer than one person will be infected by another individual with COVID-19.

This does point towards a positive trend, yet the country's chancellor, Angela Merkel, has warned of "fragile interim success." Many virologists agree the country is still in a very critical stage.

There are slight variations of easing between the 16 federal states.

Saxony, for instance, is the first state to make wearing a face mask mandatory and, according to Bavaria's premier, Markus Söder, protective masks will also be required in shops and on public transport from 27 April.

To help facilitate this decision, the country's health minister, Jens Spahn, has announced that as of August, German companies will produce 10 million FFP2 masks and 40 million surgical masks monthly.

By Hermione Kitson in Italy

Italy's prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, is set to announce the details of the second phase of Italy's COVID-19 exit strategy.

Via Facebook, Conte said he would like to allow everything to reopen, but that it would be irresponsible and cancel the efforts made so far to combat the virus.

He says it is a complex program, taking into consideration the different way each region has been affected. The plan will be communicated by the end of the week.

The latest figures show 454 people died in Italy in the past 24 hours, but that is less than half the number of last month's peak. The total death toll is now 24,114.

Conte was due to address both houses of parliament on Tuesday afternoon.

Italy's prime minister, Giuseppe Conte, is set to announce details of a second phase of Italy's COVID-19 exit strategy on Tuesday. /AP

By Toni Waterman in Brussels

The European Union

A senior European Central Bank executive has issued a warning to the eurozone, two days before leaders are scheduled to debate how to finance a coronavirus recovery fund. In a Politico opinion piece, Fabio Panetta said the only way to contain the recession is for all economies to work together and that "any perception that common action is absent" could "erode the trust in the euro."

Leaders remain divided on how to finance a coronavirus recovery fund ahead of their Thursday meeting. European Commission vice-president Valdis Dombrovskis said the EU executive will propose a plan to borrow from the open markets, although details on how this would happen remain thin.

It would involve significantly increasing the EU long-term budget, perhaps by up to $1.5 trillion. On Monday, Germany signaled it's open to the idea of using the bloc's budget to issue EU bonds. Getting Berlin onboard is seen as key to clinching a deal.

Belgium

Doctors in Belgium are studying whether a frostbite-like lesion could be a previously unknown symptom of coronavirus. The dermatology team at CHU Saint-Pierre published a research paper on the suspected link after doctors in several countries began to notice purple lesions on patients' feet and toes. Doctors say more research is needed before a direct link can be drawn.

Families of coronavirus victims could mount a class action lawsuit against the government, claiming officials were too slow to respond to the deadly pandemic. Lawyer Hamid El Abouti raised concerns over the time it took to close Belgium's borders, halt flights to Italy and China and implement a nationwide lockdown. Abouti said a dozen families have come forward so far, but 50 would be needed to move the case forward.

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