No infection rise in France after lockdown ends

Ten days after France relaxed its coronavirus lockdown, there's been no increase in the daily rate of new infections, French health minister Olivier Veran said Wednesday.

He said the number of COVID-19 patients being admitted to hospital each day was decreasing, as well as the number of people being treated in intensive care units.

But this didn't mean the virus had disappeared, he warned.

New clusters of COVID-19 cases have been recently discovered among slaughterhouse workers in western France and police officers in northern France.

Veran also promised that health workers in hospitals and nursing homes will see a salary increase as part of a new government plan for the public health system.

French President Emmanuel Macron announced the plan last week during the visit of a Paris hospital, where he faced anger from doctors and nurses demanding better pay and improved working conditions.

The details of the plan will be unveiled in July, Veran said.

France has reported at least 143,427 cases of people infected with the virus and 28,022 deaths.