In good news for those who don't particularly enjoy having a swab shoved deep into one nostril, the French health authority has given the green light for the rollout of saliva tests for Covid-19, The Local France reported. The test is considered slightly less accurate than the nasal swab, but it is easier and more pleasant to use, and will be used to ramp up mass testing in schools and universities.

British PM Boris Johnson indicated on Wednesday that the coronavirus lockdown in England will remain in place until at least 8 March as he ruled out any imminent return to school for most students, AP reported.

Ukraine closed schools, restaurants and gyms on Friday as a tighter nationwide lockdown took effect to fight the coronavirus pandemic in the nation of 41 million people, Reuters reported.

The Czech government ordered bars, restaurants and clubs closed from Wednesday and shifted schools to distance learning as it puts new measures in place to curb the fast spread of novel coronavirus cases, Reuters reported.

Schools reopened in much of Italy on Monday for the first time since the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic in early March, ANSA reported. Some 5.6m pupils are back in class in 12 regions, plus the autonomous province of Trento.

French education minister Jean-Michel Blanquer announced on Friday 22 schools were closed in France due to cases of Covid-19. "In mainland France, there are currently 12 schools closed out of a total of over 60,000, which is a small figure. Adding 10 schools in La Reunion (island), that makes it 22," Blanquer told Europe 1 radio.

Schools open their doors in many EU countries nearly six months after the coronavirus outbreak forced them to close. Some teachers and parents worry the reopening will accelerate the spread of Covid-19, but governments have insisted it should go ahead. Countries are taking different approaches to minimise contagion amid students.

European nations are pushing ahead with reopening primary schools despite a rise in coronavirus cases, with smaller classes, shorter lessons and mask-wearing among the steps adopted to curb infections, news wires reported. But many parents and teachers worry the measures are not enough, with some parents inclined to keep their children at home.

At least 41 schools in Berlin have reported that students or teachers have become infected with the coronavirus not even two weeks after schools reopened in the German capital.

Romanian schools will start reopening in September on a case-by-case basis, with towns affected by the new coronavirus pandemic likely to hold classes online, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis said on Wednesday. “For most children, the reopening means they will actually physically go to school,” he told reporters adding that the way each school functions will be decided locally, on a county level.