Hundreds of thousands of people in northern France had to go back into lockdown on Saturday as the government extended the weekend lockdown to the region. Country’s health officials are trying to step up a nationwide vaccination campaign to make up ground after a slow start.

Residents of Pas-de-Calais on the north coast joined those in the region’s port of Dunkirk,  and the Mediterranean resort of Nice — which are already on shutdowns on Saturdays and Sundays.

That puts more than two million people across France under the weekend restrictions, required to stay at home unless they can provide a written exemption.

With hospital capacity at 90% in Pas-de-Calais, the region’s top official insisted the new restrictions were necessary to prevent local health services from being overwhelmed.

Two thirds of the cases recorded there recently have been the more contagious variant first detected in England, local officials said.

But with a 6 pm-6 am curfew already in place and non-essential shops closed, the new restrictions will further hit already hard-pressed businesses.

Paris police meanwhile moved in to clear people off the banks of the Seine after crowds ignored social distancing guidelines to make the most of a sunny spring day.

COVID-19 has killed 88,300 people across France, according to the latest figures Saturday.

The government is trying to step up its vaccination campaign to give a first jab to 10 million people by mid-April, 20 million by mid-May and 30 million by summer.

So far however, fewer than 3.4 million people in France have received at least one dose of the vaccine — compared with more than 22 million in Britain.

This weekend the French campaign focused on the over-75s and people most vulnerable to the more serious form of COVID-19.

In Paris on Friday, police extended a ban on the consumption of alcohol outdoors to the banks of the Seine to try to reduce the crowds gathering to enjoy the spring sunshine.

While the ban was generally respected, officers had to move in on Saturday to clear the banks of the river because Parisians, ignoring social distancing guidelines, were packed too close together.

France’s Order of Doctors meanwhile, appealed to all health workers to set an example and get vaccinated. So far, take-up in the sector has been just 30%.