NHS England figures show that, as of Friday, 5,088,156 vaccine shots have been administered to people in London, including more than 3.5m first doses and nearly 1.5m second doses.

This compares with more than 5.5m first doses and 2.3m second doses given to people in the Midlands.

The breakdown for the other regions is:

– East of England: 3.4m first doses and 1.5m second doses

– North East and Yorkshire: 4.5m first doses and 2m second doses

– North West: 3.6m first doses and 1.6m second doses

– South East: 4.7m first doses and 2m second doses

– South West: 3.1m first doses and 1.4m second doses

Here are some images from the Bois de la Cambre in Brussels, where people protesting coronavirus restrictions have once again been met with tear gas and water cannon.

A body representing Scottish bars and nightclubs has announced it will take legal action against the Scottish Government over continued coronavirus restrictions, alleging that “wholly inadequate” support measures had driven the nightlife sector “to the edge of insolvency”.

Claiming that “Covid-19 no longer presents the threat to public health that it did even a few short months ago” as a result of the vaccine drive and “heroic” efforts of the NHS and scientists, Night-Time Industries Association Scotland (NTIA) alleged that ongoing curbs “are no longer justifiable or proportionate”.

The body claimed any continued restrictions “would now be in breach of Article 1” of the European Convention on Human Rights, and warned that 39,000 jobs were now at risk as a direct result of restrictions.

NTIA said it was “with an extraordinary sense of disappointment and frustration” that it confirmed its intention to proceed with a judicial review challenging the validity of all current restrictions relating to the sector.

In response, the Scottish Government said nightclubs have by now have received restart grants of up to £19,500 from its strategic framework business fund.

Hundreds of people protesting coronavirus restrictions in Belgium have been met with water cannon and tear gas, Agence France-Presse reports.

The show of police force took place at the Bois de la Cambre – a large park in Brussels, where revellers and protesters were met with similar measures several weeks ago, including police horse charges, after descending on the park in partial response to a fake music festival called “Boum”, described as an April Fool’s joke.

The gathering today was billed as a so-called “Boum 2” protest, according to AFP.

Pope Francis has expressed his wish for the end of the pandemic and a return of what he called “a horizon of hope”, in a special prayer service on Saturday in St Peter’s Basilica.

The Catholic leader hosted an evening rosary service attended by about 200 rank-and-file faithful who sat spaced apart according to coronavirus protocols.

The pope lamented how the pandemic has left so many people “anguished, bewildered and weeping for their dear ones who have died, buried sometimes in a way that wounds the soul”, and invoked the intercession of the Virgin Mary with God as he prayed that “this hard trial end and that a horizon of hope and peace return”.

Mexico’s president Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador said yesterday that the US would probably send his country 5 million more doses of AstraZeneca’s coronavirus vaccine, as the firm admitted production in Latin American had suffered multiple setbacks.

Struggling with behind-schedule local AstraZeneca production and shortfalls in deliveries from foreign vaccine suppliers, Mexico has asked the US for more jabs after initially receiving some 2.7 million AstraZeneca doses from the US.

“It’s probable that they’ll help us with a loan, while the AstraZeneca plant in Mexico gets up and running,” Mr Lopez Obrador said at a news conference.

AstraZeneca has confirmed setbacks to production of its Covid-19 vaccines in Latin America, excluding Brazil, but said it will still meet a commitment to deliver 150 million doses to the region this year.

Reuters reports that the Anglo-Swedish pharmaceutical giant said lower-than-expected production, shortages of critical supplies and longer periods to meet internal controls had slowed the process.

Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta has lifted the coronavirus lockdown he imposed last month, allowing for a reopening of bars and restaurants, religious services and schools.

Curbs on travel in the capital Nairobi and four surrounding counties will be lifted, schools will be allowed to gradually reopen and religious services will resume with some restrictions, he said in a speech. Political gatherings will still be banned.

An evening curfew that currently starts at 8pm will be revised to 10pm, in changes that come into effect from midnight on Saturday, Mr Kenyatta said.

Cases in Kenya, the richest country in East Africa, have fallen from last month’s peak but it is still among the top five nations in Africa reporting new infections and deaths, according to a Reuters tracker.

Unicef has warned that the world’s most vulnerable children will “suffer the consequences” of Boris Johnson’s cuts to the UK’s overseas aid contributions – which the prime minister said this week were necessary because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The UN childrens’ agency is to have its UK funding cut by around 60 per cent, it said, warning it was “deeply concerned” by the decision, urging ministers to restore overseas aid funding by the end of the year at the latest.

It is the latest cut to emerge from the government’s decision to break its manifesto commitment to maintain spending at 0.7 per cent of national income by slashing it to 0.5 per cent.

Facing widespread criticism, Mr Johnson this week insisted spending would increase when it is “fiscally prudent to do so” as he said the coronavirus pandemic means it is necessary to “economise”.

Pakistan will reduce the number of international flights into and out of its airports by 80 per cent to help curb rising coronavirus cases, the government has announced.

The restrictions will come into effect on 5 May and will run for two weeks, Pakistan’s Civil Aviation Authority said in a statement, though it did not specify which flights or destinations would be affected by the measure. The controls will be reviewed on 18 May.