France has opened up Covid-19 vaccines to all adults, a week before Germany, as Europe races to avoid another wave of infections caused by new virus variants.

So far, 25.4 million people have received the first shot of a vaccine, representing about 38 per cent of the population and nearly one in two adults, according to AFP.

Until now, people over 50, workers in professions particularly exposed to the virus and younger adults with underlying health problems were given priority