European Coronavirus Updates: UK records highest daily coronavirus death toll since April, Germany reports new daily record of 1,129 COVID-19 deaths

A delivery man cycles past the closed Novello Theatre in central London, Britain, Dec. 29, 2020. (Xinhua/Han Yan)

-- UK records highest daily coronavirus death toll since April

-- Germany reports new daily record of 1,129 COVID-19 deaths

-- Malta detects three cases of new coronavirus variant

-- Sweden recommends wearing face masks on public transport

BRUSSELS, Dec. 30 (Xinhua) -- The following are the latest developments of the COVID-19 pandemic in European countries.

LONDON -- Britain has recorded almost 1,000 coronavirus deaths overnight, the highest daily death toll since April, according to the latest official figures released on Wednesday.

The daily number of deaths of people who had had a positive test result for COVID-19 and died within 28 days of the first positive test reached 981, bringing the total to 72,548, according to the official figures.

This is the highest daily death toll reported in the country since April 24, when 1,010 coronavirus-related deaths were reported, there is likely to be a lag in reporting deaths over the Christmas period, the Evening Standard newspaper reported Wednesday.

A sign leading to a Covid-19 test center is seen in Frankfurt, Germany, on Dec. 16, 2020.(Photo by Armando Babani/Xinhua)

BERLIN -- The daily number of deaths related to COVID-19 in Germany exceeded the 1,000-mark for the first time, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Wednesday.

The figure increased by 1,129 within one day, bringing the official death toll in the country to 32,107, according to the RKI.

COVID-19 infections increased by 22,459 on Wednesday, according to the federal government agency for disease control and prevention. So far, some 1.68 million cases have been recorded in Germany.

People walk past a shopwindow of an outlet selling high-end watches in Valletta, Malta, Nov. 27, 2020. (Photo by Jonathan Borg/Xinhua)

VALLETTA -- Malta has detected three cases of a more contagious variant of coronavirus that was first reported in Britain, Minister for Health Chris Fearne announced in a tweet on Wednesday.

Fearne said the cases were immediately isolated and their contacts quarantined.

The variant, first reported by the UK earlier this month, is said to be up to 70 percent more transmissible.

A man wearing a face mask waits for a bus during the COVID-19 pandemic in Stockholm, capital of Sweden, on Nov. 3, 2020. (Photo by Wei Xuechao/Xinhua)

STOCKHOLM -- Sweden's Public Health Agency has for the first time issued recommendations for wearing face masks on public transport, but only during weekday rush hours.

According to the new guidelines, published on Wednesday, Swedes aged 16 and above should wear face masks on public transport between 7 a.m. and 9 a.m. and between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays.

The Public Health Agency has also urged public-transport operators to provide free face masks for commuters, to inform them about the proper way of wearing face masks and to help dispose of used ones in a safe way.