French minister panics after leaving mask in car at Bastille Day ceremony

Agnes Pannier-Runacher runs after car that dropped her off at Place de la Concorde

A French minister had a moment of panic after she realised she had forgotten her face mask for a Bastille Day ceremony.

Agnes Pannier-Runacher greeted other dignitaries – many wearing face coverings – before suddenly turning around to run after the car which had just dropped her off for the parade in Paris on Tuesday.

She stopped as the vehicle continued to drive away.

The junior minister responsible for the industry portfolio then pointed at her face to someone nearby, then back the way the car had gone.

Ms Pannier-Runacher kept her mouth and nose covered with her hands until someone ran towards her and handed her a space face mask.

Emmanuel Macron, the French president, has encouraged his compatriots to wear masks whenever possible when they are in public spaces, even outdoors.

He announced on Tuesday face masks will become compulsory in all indoor public spaces from the start of August as part of continued efforts to contain the spread of coronavirus, which has infected more than 207,000 people in France.

Ms Pannier-Runacher realised she did not have her face covering as she arrived at the Place de la Concorde for the Bastille Day military parade – which had a focus this year on honouring frontline workers in the fight against Covid-19.

Medical workers stood silently – some with tears in their eyes - as a lengthy applause in their honour rang out over the central Parisian square during Tuesday’s ceremony.

France’s national day dates back to the 1789 revolution, when citizens stormed the Bastille fortress, a prison that had become a symbol of the harsh rule of the monarchy.

Across the capital on Bastille Day, medical workers’ unions marched against years of cost cuts that left public hospitals ill-prepared when the virus raced across France and to call for better pay for staff.

The protest came after the government announced pay rises for health workers costing billions - which some unions have called a “sham” deal.

Additional reporting by agencies