<span style="color: #222222;">France has recorded more than one lakh virus infections in a single day for the first time in the pandemic and COVID-19 hospitalizations have doubled over the past month, as the fast-spreading omicron variant complicates the French government's efforts to stave off a new lockdown.<br />'' <br />'' Most new infections are linked to the omicron variant, which government experts predict will be dominant in France in the coming days. Omicron is already dominant in Britain, right across the Channel.<br />'' <br />'' Meanwhile, a surge in delta variant infections in recent months is pushing up hospital admissions in France and putting ICUs under strain again over the Christmas holidays. More than 1,000 people in France with the virus died over the past week, bringing the country's overall death toll to more than 122,000.<br />'' <br />''<br />''President Emmanuel Macron's government is holding emergency meetings today to discuss the next steps in tackling the virus. Some scientists and educators have urged delaying the post-holiday return to school or suggested re-imposing a curfew.</span>