Europe passes grim milestone in pandemic deaths

A string of European countries is seeing record Covid infections as Europe surpasses 250,000 deaths. And Joe Biden says President Donald Trump is the worst person to lead the U-S out of the pandemic.

An NHS Covid high alert level sign on a bus shelter in central London. Source: Press Association

The picture is unrelentingly grim in Europe as a string of countries reported record increases, led by France, which posted more than 50,000 daily cases for the first time, while the continent passed the threshold of 250,000 deaths.

Mike Ryan, the World Health Organization's top emergencies expert, says the region's 46 countries accounted for 46 per cent of global cases and nearly one third of deaths.