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TOP HEADLINES

• France's health minister has warned that the virus is circulating four times more among the under-40s in France than among the over-65s. "We're in a risky situation," said Olivier Veran. "This is not a French exception, it's a European dynamic."

•Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged people to act on health adviceafter the country registered a record 2,328 new cases and 37 deaths in the past 24 hours. "Please help doctors, be careful," said Zelenskiy. "We really did not have the first wave [of infections] when it happened in Europe. Now it is coming."

•Italy reported 1,071 new infections in the past 24 hours on Saturday, exceeding 1,000 cases in a day for the first time since Maywhen the government eased rigid restrictions – but health minister Roberto Speranza insists "We will not have a new lockdown."

•Ireland registered more than 100 daily cases for the fourth time in eight dayson Saturday after the health service was notified of 156 new infections and two additional deaths.

• The UK's chief medical officers have said missing out on education posed a more significant risk to children than catching COVID-19 , citing "a certainty of long-term harm to many children and young people from not attending school."

• UK newspapers have reported prime minister Boris Johnson telling allies that "failure to reopen schools is not an option" and ordering a PR campaign to ensure schools open on time.

•The World Health Organization said children aged 12 and over should wear masksto cut transmission under the same conditions as adults, while children between six and 11 should wear them on a risk-based approach.

•Around 1,500 volunteers equipped with face masks, hand disinfectant and tracking gadgets attended an indoor concertin Germany on Saturday as part of a study to simulate how the novel coronavirus spreads in large gatherings.

•Cycling's Team Ineos withdrew its squad from the Italian National Championship after its rider Leonardo Basso tested positivefor the new coronavirus. His training partners Filippo Ganna, Salvatore Puccio and Gianni Moscon will also self-isolate for two weeks.

• More than half the companies in Spain that closed at the height of the coronavirus pandemic have reopened , according to government figures.

•The French government has delayed revealing the details of its $118 billion economic recovery planuntil the first week of September, instead of next Tuesday, as it focuses on preparing the new school term.

Holidaymakers returning from Sardinia by ferry take compulsory swab tests at the port of Civitavecchia, north-west of Rome. Data suggests many of Italy's new cases are linked to holiday returns, specifically from Sardinia. /Vincenzo Pinto/AFP

ACROSS EUROPE

Andrew Wilson in Oxford, UK

Tougher penalties for illegal gatherings of more than 30 people will be introduced in England on Friday, including fines of up to $12,000. They're aimed at unauthorized parties and gatherings where people don't wear masks or observe social distancing.

The government's chief medical advisor Chris Whitty has warned that it's probably worse for children to miss school than risk school. He said the chances of children dying from COVID-19 were "incredibly small" but not "zero."

Local authorities in areas where people have been told not to socialize with other households, but where businesses and workplaces remain open, say the rules are confusing.

Germany

On Saturday night in Leipzig, there was an unusual opportunity for 1,500 volunteers; the chance to attend an indoor concert. But this was a gig like no other. As well as masks and disinfectant, the attendees were given tracking devices in a study simulating how the virus spreads in large gatherings.

As part of the Restart19 study, researchers from the University Medical Center in Halle want to discover how cultural and sporting events can take place safely, without posing a risk to the population.

Singer-songwriter Tim Bendzko performed to a group of volunteers with contact tracers to track distances between concertgoers, identifying where in the arena people might gather too closely together.

"I am extremely satisfied with the discipline displayed by the participants," Stefan Moritz, the head of the study, told a news conference after the concert. "I was surprised how disciplined everyone was in wearing masks."

Italy

Italy's caseload has broken through the psychological barrier of 1,000 new cases per day for the first time since lockdown was eased in May, with the health ministry reporting 1,071 new infections in the past 24 hours.

The country's steady increase in infections over the last month has been blamed on holidays and nightlife. On Saturday, the region of Lazio that includes the capital Rome, reported the most significant rise, with 215 new cases; the region's health chief said around 60 percent were people returning from holidays.

Countermeasures include closing clubs and discos and making masks compulsory in public at night, but government sources insist there will be no return to the previous restrictions. "We will not have a new lockdown," said health minister Roberto Speranza. "I am optimistic, although prudent. Our national health service has become much stronger."

France

Health minister Olivier Veran has warned that the virus is circulating four times more among France's under-40s in France than the over-65s – but that contamination was also rising among the elderly.

"We're in a risky situation," said Veran, adding that the higher number of cases being detected was not solely down to more testing – but like president Emmanuel Macron, he ruled out another total lockdown.

Veran noted that the main source of contagion was gatherings flouting social distancing rules, as opposed to earlier in the summer, when it had been the workplace. "New measures will be implemented shortly," Veran said, without elaborating.

The health minister was also at pains to point out that rising rates among certain demographics were not confined to one country. "This is not a French exception, it's a European dynamic," he said.

Ukraine

President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has urged people to follow health advice after his country's rate of new infections rose to a record level. Infections have risen sharply this week and Saturday brought a new daily high of 2,328 fresh cases, pushing the total to 102,971.

Zelenskiy has urged the population to wear masks and respect social distancing. "Please help doctors, be careful," he said in a televised interview. "We really did not have the first wave [of infections] when it happened in Europe. Now it is coming, now we are growing ... almost daily."

The president said Ukraine had avoided large-scale spread in the spring thanks to a strict lockdown, allowing the country to ready itself for subsequent spikes.

"We are well prepared in terms of [hospital] places, equipment, number of tests ... But no number of places in hospitals, and especially no number of specialists, will help us survive if there is the second and third wave, if it is very powerful," the president said. "And here the question is only for our people".

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