Europe has registered a record number of outbreaks of mosquito-borne illnesses such as chikungunya and West Nile virus this year, the EU health agency said Wednesday, saying climate change was contributing to a "new normal".

Europe is experiencing longer and more intense transmission seasons for mosquito-borne diseases, said the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control (ECDC).

"This shift is driven by climatic and environmental factors such as rising temperatures, longer summer seasons, milder winters and changes in rainfall patterns -- conditions that combine to create a favourable environment for mosquitoes to thrive and transmit viruses," it said in a statement.

Europe was entering a new phase where "longer, more widespread and more intense transmission of mosquito-borne di

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