An El Nino-less summer is coming. Here's what that could mean for Canada
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Three judges who unanimously rejected Novak Djokovic's bid to stay in Australia to contest the Australian Open have revealed their reasons for the ruling.
In a written statement, the judges said it was not irrational for Immigration Minister Alex Hawke to eject the Djokovic due to concerns the unvaccinated Serbian star could pose a risk to public health and order.
The ruling said it was open to the minister to infer Djokovic's presence could encourage anti-vax protests, which could aid the spread of COVID-19.
And they noted the minister's decision also included the star's possible influence on people who were unsure about whether to take the vaccine.
"The possible influence on the second group comes from common sense and human experience: An iconic world tennis star may influence people of all ages, young or old, but perhaps especially the young and the impressionable, to emulate him. This is not fanciful; it does not need evidence," the ruling said.
The explanation ends one of the most controversial episodes in the history of the Australian Open.
The world's No. 1 men's player was forced to leave the country on the eve of the competition after the court failed to find fault with the immigration minister's decision to cancel his visa.
It was the second time Djokovic's visa had been cancelled -- the first came in the hours after his arrival in Australia on Jan. 5, when Australian Border Force (ABF) officers rejected his purported exemption from rules that state all new arrivals must be fully vaccinated.
Djokovic said a previous COVID-19 infection meant he was exempt, but under federal rules that's not enough and he was detained in an immigration facility.
The matter went to court and a single judge ruled the decision was "unreasonable" because he wasn't given enough time to consult his lawyers. Djokovic was freed from detention and resumed his training at Melbourne Park in the hope of securing his 21st grand slam title.
However, days later the government intervened to cancel his visa again, stating the unvaccinated player was a threat to public health and order. The issue was referred to a higher court and the three judges convened last Sunday.
Djokovic's legal team didn't argue the merits of the minister's decision, only that he had made a jurisdictional error under the country's migration law.
On Sunday, the judges ruled there had been no error and Djokovic agreed to leave.
In a statement, the player said he was "disappointed" with the decision but respected the court's ruling. That night he departed Melbourne en route to Serbia, where he received a hero's welcome.
Serbian Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said Australia's treatment of the star was "scandalous." Brnabic told CNN Wednesday she didn't know why Djokovic wasn't vaccinated, but added she doesn't believe he's an anti-vaxxer.
"He supports the vaccination of those people who want to be vaccinated. So I am not perceiving him as anti-vaxxer," she said.
In a statement soon after Sunday's ruling, Djokovic's family blamed the decision on politics.
"This isn't just a sports issue and playing at the first grand slam of the season, dominated by Novak for a decade now, but politics as well all the interests that took priority over sports," the statement said.
Under Australian law, Djokovic can be banned from the country for three years, though Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews hasn't ruled out an exemption. "Any application will be reviewed on its merits," she said earlier this week.
On Tuesday, Tennis Australia expressed regret the visa dispute had distracted players in the tournament.
"We deeply regret the impact this had on all players," the statement said. "There are always lessons to learn, and we will review all aspects of our preparation and implementation to inform our planning -- as we do every year. That process always starts once the Australian Open champions have lifted their trophies."
The grand slam ends on Jan. 31.
As Canadians brace themselves for summer temperatures, forecasters say a weakening El Nino cycle doesn’t mean relief from the heat.
Canada Post is increasing stamp prices for the third time since 2019, a move the Crown corporation says is a "reality" of its sales-based revenue structure.
The federal New Democrats are calling out Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre and his party for trying to block the bill that could pave the way for millions of Canadians to access birth control and diabetes coverage.
Defence lawyers of Jeremy Skibicki have admitted in court the accused killed four Indigenous women, but argues he is not criminally responsible for the deaths by way of mental disorder – this latest development has triggered a judge-alone trial rather than a jury trial.
A daily spoonful of olive oil could lower your risk of dying from dementia, according to a new study by Harvard scientists.
An Ontario MPP was asked again to leave the Ontario legislature on Monday for wearing a keffiyeh, a garment that was banned by the Speaker last month due to its political symbolism.
H5N1 or avian flu is decimating wildlife around the world and is now spreading among cattle in the United States, sparking concerns about 'pandemic potential' for humans. Now a health expert is urging Canada to scale up surveillance north of the border.
Democratic Institutions Minister Dominic LeBlanc will be tabling legislation on Monday aimed at countering foreign interference in Canada. Federal officials have scheduled a technical briefing on the incoming bill for Monday afternoon.
Polish prosecutors have discontinued an investigation into human skeletons found at a site where German dictator Adolf Hitler and other Nazi leaders spent time during the Second World War because the advanced state of decay made it impossible to determine the cause of death, a spokesman said Monday.
Eighty-two-year-old Susan Neufeldt and 90-year-old Ulrich Richter are no spring chickens, but their love blossomed over the weekend with their wedding at Pine View Manor just outside of Rosthern.
Alberta Ballet's double-bill production of 'Der Wolf' and 'The Rite of Spring' marks not only its final show of the season, but the last production for twin sisters Alexandra and Jennifer Gibson.
A mother goose and her goslings caused a bit of a traffic jam on a busy stretch of the Trans-Canada Highway near Vancouver Saturday.
A British Columbia mayor has been censured by city council – stripping him of his travel and lobbying budgets and removing him from city committees – for allegedly distributing a book that questions the history of Indigenous residential schools in Canada.
Three men in Quebec from the same family have fathered more than 600 children.
A group of SaskPower workers recently received special recognition at the legislature – for their efforts in repairing one of Saskatchewan's largest power plants after it was knocked offline for months following a serious flood last summer.
A police officer on Montreal's South Shore anonymously donated a kidney that wound up drastically changing the life of a schoolteacher living on dialysis.
Since 1932, Montreal's Henri Henri has been filled to the brim with every possible kind of hat, from newsboy caps to feathered fedoras.
Police in Oak Bay, B.C., had to close a stretch of road Sunday to help an elephant seal named Emerson get safely back into the water.