Top German public health officials have said AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine is safe and Germany would continue to use it on Friday after several European countries halted its distribution amid safety concerns.

“Everything we know so far suggests that the benefits of the vaccine, even after every individual case reported, are greater than the risks, and that continues to be the case,” Health Minister Jens Spahn told a news briefing.

Health authorities in Denmark, Norway and Iceland on Thursday suspended the use of AstraZeneca’s vaccine after reports of blood clots in some people who had been vaccinated.

Lothar Wieler, head of the Robert Koch Institute for Infectious Diseases, added that there was no statistical evidence of excess mortality after any coronavirus shot.

“Since we’re now vaccinating the old and very old, and most people who die are of course old and very old, then there can be a chronological link between vaccination and death,” he said.

“There is no evidence that the link is statistically excessive,” Mr Wieler added.

Bulgaria on Friday halted inoculations with the AstraZeneca COVID-19 vaccine until the European Medicines Agency sends a written statement dispelling all doubts about the vaccine’s safety, the government said in a statement.

Meanwhile, Portugal’s medicines regulator Infarmed has said the shot is safe. Regulators in Canada, Australia, Mexico, the Philippines and South Korea have also backed the injection.

Italy will be placed under a nationwide lockdown for the Easter weekend, a draft law decree seen by Reuters said on Friday, as the government battles to stem a fresh surge in coronavirus cases and hospitalisations.

Non-essential shops will be shuttered nationwide from April 3 to April 5. On those days, Italians will only be allowed to leave their homes for work, health or emergency reasons.

The draft decree also said that as of Monday curbs will be tightened in the country’s low-risk ‘yellow’ regions, where movement between towns will be severely limited and restaurants and bars will be closed.

Along with nationwide measures, Italy calibrates restrictions in its 20 regions according to a four-tier colour-coded system (white, yellow, orange and red) based on infection levels and revised every week.

The decree is expected to be approved later today.

Transmission of Covid-19 drops by at least 30 per cent after a person is vaccinated, a new study suggests.

Public Health Scotland and the University of Glasgow assessed 300,000 NHS workers between December 8 – the first day of vaccination in Scotland – and 3 March.

The researchers looked at the records of people who live with both vaccinated and unvaccinated healthcare workers, finding those who had a single dose were at least 30 per cent less likely to pass the virus on.

Given that people living with healthcare workers could also catch the virus from other sources, researchers say the 30 per cent figure is a low estimate.

Those who have had both doses of vaccine were found to be at least 54 per cent less likely to pass on the virus.

Malaysia’s government on Friday defended a new law aimed at tackling rampant fake news related to Covid-19 and an ongoing state of emergency, as critics warned it could be used to silence dissent and curtail free of speech.

The emergency ordinance, which took effect on Friday, will make it an offence to publish or reproduce any “wholly or partly false” content related to the pandemic or the emergency declaration, prescribing hefty fines and jail terms of up to six years.

Emergency laws do not need parliamentary approval.

Opposition lawmakers and civil society groups said the new law was too sweeping and could be used to instil fear among the public about criticising the government.

Joe Biden has told America he hopes the nation can celebrate 4 July cookouts as “independence” from the coronavirus, but warned he needs “everyone to do their part”.

In his first televised primetime address, considered a presidential rite of passage for every occupant of the Oval Office, Mr Biden said he was ordering that every adult be made eligible for one of the three approved vaccines by May 1.

He said he was also hopeful of pressing ahead with a plan to open most schools for youngsters from kindergarten to the eighth grade, within the first 100 days of his presidency.

Chief US correspondent Andrew Buncombe has more details:

Italy’s cabinet is scheduled to meet this morning to dicuss possible Covid lockdown measures amid rising cases, Bloomberg reports.

New restrictions could be imposed in regions where the country’s big cities are – including the areas surrounding Milan and Rome.

The measures may be introduced as early as Monday and remain in place until 6 Apri, according to Bloomberg.

Thailand has delayed the use of AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine that was scheduled to start on Friday with the public vaccination of the prime minister and cabinet members, amid concerns about reports of blood clots in some vaccinated people.

Thailand joined the ranks of Denmark, Norway and Iceland who have suspended the use of the AstraZeneca vaccine after about 30 cases of “thromboembolic events” or blood clots were reported out of the five million Europeans who received the vaccine.

Namita Singh has the full story:

• Government order of ‘stay at home’ becomes ‘stay local’
• Four people from two different households can meet up outdoors to socialise, including in gardens, although children are excluded from that number
• Golf, tennis and basketball facilities can reopen
• One designated person can visit a care home resident

• All primary school children and those scheduled to take exams will resume lessons.
• Schools will have the flexibility to bring back year 10 and 12 pupils and more students will return to colleges
• Hairdressers and barbers can open up again but restricted to appointments only

• Gradual easing of non-essential shopping and non-essential aisles in supermarkets
• Garden centres can reopen

• Self-contained accommodation in Wales will be able to reopen provided Covid-19 cases continue to fall

• All shops, including all close contact services, will be able to open – the same date as in England
• All other pupils will return to school

Washington has told the European Union that it should not expect to receive AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccines manufactured in the United States any time soon.

Separately, Thierry Breton, the bloc’s internal market commissioner, said he was not seeing “best efforts” from AstraZeneca to meet its EU delivery targets.

Novavax has said its vaccine is 96 per cent effective against the original Covid strain and 86 per cent effective against the British variant.

The results come from late-stage trials conducted in the UK. The shot is only 55 per effective against the South Africa variant, Novavax added.

The firm hopes to get authorisation to roll out its jab by May.

The Welsh government is to begin to reopen people’s personal lives and the economy as coronavirus numbers in Wales “continue to go in the right direction”, first minister Mark Drakeford has said.

People from two households will be able to meet in gardens from Saturday, while hairdressers and barbers will be able to operate from Monday. Non-essential retail will begin to reopen from March 22.

Mr Drakeford told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “Provided things continue to go in the right direction, we hope to be able to reopen self-contained accommodation for the Easter period.”

He said that in many Welsh homes, people would need to go through the house to access the back garden but “the idea is you walk straight through, out the back door into the garden”.

“That will be a big step forward here in Wales, people haven’t been able to do that now for weeks and weeks,” he said.

“For many families that will allow grandparents to see grandchildren again and it’s a sign that cautiously, carefully and step by step, we’re now on the journey of reopening Welsh society.”

Thailand has said it will delay use of the AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine after several European countries temporarily suspended the jabs following a small number of reports of blood clots.

Yong Poovorawan, an adviser to Thailand‘s vaccination programme, said the delay, pending an investigation into the cause of reported side-effects, will not have a big impact on the rollout.

AstraZeneca says there is no evidence of an increased risk of pulmonary embolism or deep vein thrombosis with the vaccine.

Welsh people will be able to take holidays within Wales at Easter, the first minister has confirmed.

Mark Drakeford, the Labour leader in Wales, told BBC Radio 4’s Today: “We will reopen self-contained accommodation in Wales for Easter.

“So that means if you have a caravan or you can hire a cottage, then you’ll be able to do that.”

Travel correspondent Simon Calder has the full report:

Good morning and welcome to The Independent’s rolling Covid coverage.