The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control said that Omicron is likely to increase the death toll in Europe even if it is less severe.
The EU agency predicts that more people will be admitted to hospital or killed this winter because of the new Covid variant.
The risk assessment states that governments need to re-introduce Covid restrictions, with one option being to advise families and friends not to mix over the festive season.
The director of the ECDC, based in Sweden, said that the Omicron variant is very likely to cause additional hospitalisations and deaths.
There will be no time to address the vaccine gaps that still exist in the current situation, so we will not be able to prevent the impact of the Omicron variant.
