B.C.'s top court tosses mink farms' bid for damages after COVID-era ban
The ruling posted Friday says several farms filed identical lawsuits against the provincial government after regulatory changes in 2021 made it illegal to farm mink in B.C. in response 'to the risk of farmed mink spreading respiratory viruses,' namely COVID-19.
The ruling says the mink farmers disputed the 'real reason' for the regulatory overhaul, claiming the province capitulated 'to the anti-fur lobby and public opinion.'
3:28
Why is B.C. implementing a phasing out approach to ending mink farms in the province?
Justice David Harris' ruling for the three-judge panel says the farmers had no 'reasonable possibility' of demonstrating the province acted unlawfully.
Story continues below advertisement
The ruling also says it was 'misconceived' to have named B.C.'s chief public health officer and chief veterinarian as defendants.
Get weekly health news
Receive the latest medical news and health information delivered to you every Sunday. Sign up for weekly health newsletter Sign Up
By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy
It says dismissing the case is not a judgment on the merits of the mink farmers' claims, noting their 'sincere outrage' over their investments and livelihoods being destroyed by what they claimed was 'unjustified, arbitrary and capricious governmental action.'
The ruling says the mink farms co-operated with the province during the COVID-19 pandemic to mitigate public health risks, which they claimed were not 'significant,' disputing the government's assertion that shutting down the industry was for 'legitimate public-health-related' reasons.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Global News
2 hours ago
- Global News
‘Significant crisis': Number of violent incidents reported in Ontario's schools grows
The number of violent incidents in Ontario's classrooms has skyrocketed in recent years, according to new data obtained by Global News, leading to calls for the Ford government to spend more on the education system. Years' worth of data shows the level of violence reported by school boards to the Ministry of Education has risen by 77 per cent since the Progressive Conservatives took office, with more than 4,400 incidents reported in the 2023-24 year alone. The rate of violent incidents has risen annually since the 2018-19 school year, with the exception of the COVID-19 pandemic, when school boards were closed for long stretches. The information, obtained by Global News using freedom of information laws, has led to renewed calls from teachers and opposition politicians for the government to address what some call a growing 'crisis.' 'It confirms what parents and educators have been saying for some time — that there is a significant crisis of violence in our classrooms and the violence is getting worse over time,' NDP MPP Chandra Pasma said. Story continues below advertisement The Ministry of Education acknowledged the numbers were increasing. 'To address rising violence in our schools and communities, our government has increased funding for school safety initiatives to the highest in Ontario history, including more funding to hire psychologists, social workers, child/youth workers and educational assistants to enhance direct services for students,' a spokesperson said. More than 4,400 incidents last year A summary of all the violence incidents reported to the government by Ontario's school boards over the past seven years shows a significant increase, especially since the pandemic. Get breaking National news For news impacting Canada and around the world, sign up for breaking news alerts delivered directly to you when they happen. Sign up for breaking National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy In 2018-19, schools reported 2,499 incidents across the province over the course of the academic year. The next year, it rose to 3,237. The figures dropped to just 993 during the 2020-21 year and 2,866 the year after, as the pandemic wound up and school returned to a normal schedule. Story continues below advertisement By 2022-23, the numbers spiked up to 4,414 violent incidents through the year. Last year, officials saw a marginal increase, taking the total to a recent record of 4,424. Use the chart above to explore the total number of incidents reported in Ontario, as well as a board-by-board breakdown. Note that the Y-axis will change depending on your selection. The Peel District School Board reported the highest number of violent incidents in the 2023-24 year, with 431. That was a drop from the year before, when Peel's 717 violent incidents made up 16 per cent of every altercation reported in the entire province. The Toronto District School Board, the largest in the country, had the second-highest number of incidents in 2023-24 at 410. Halton District School Board also appeared high in the statistics with 237. Story continues below advertisement Martha Hradowy, president of the Ontario Secondary School Teachers' Federation, said those in classrooms had been noticing the increase for some time. 'Our members are reporting to us that the level of respect for teachers, for education workers, has seen a steady decline for the last number of years,' she said. Last year, an OSSTF survey of members came to the same conclusion. It found teachers were struggling with a surge of violent attacks, including biting, hitting and kicking, as well as students using furniture to harm staff. The survey included the anonymized accounts of high school teachers. 'For the first time in my years as an educator, I dreaded coming to work every day,' one is quoted as saying in the study. 'I was starting to have severe anxiety and heart palpitations…I have a lot of skills, a lot of training…but what it came down to was there were not enough supports to meet the needs of those children in the classroom.' Calls to increase funding Chandra said the number of violent incidents in Ontario's classrooms was ultimately an issue of funding — something she accused the government of shying away from. Story continues below advertisement 'It's about children whose needs are not being met,' she said. 'We have a mental health crisis in our schools, but we don't have enough mental health professionals, so kids are asking for help and then they're not getting any until the following school year. We're closing special education programs, and so EAs are running from one crisis to the next, after the crisis has already happened.' The Ministry of Education suggested a planned increased role for police in classrooms would help. 'The rise in school violence also coincides with the shortsighted decision of many school boards across the province, starting in 2017, to end School Resource Officer programs in schools,' the spokesperson said. 'This is why our government has introduced measures that will require school boards to work with police services to develop School Resource Officer and youth engagement programs that will help foster positive relationships between students and law enforcement while making schools safer.' Pasma said addressing the rate of violence in schools was about increasing support for children, and paying the cost of hiring more staff to do that. 'Parents and teachers know the solution to this is providing the supports,' she said. 'It's having the investments to have additional caring adults in our schools. And until we have that, unfortunately, we're going to see the crisis continue to worsen.'
Edmonton Journal
2 hours ago
- Edmonton Journal
Thursday's letters: Cutting photo radar boosted speeding
Article content Now, Premier Smith and her Justice minister are calling for Elections Alberta to reverse their decision. They want the Alberta Prosperity Project's question to go ahead. Why is the UCP going to bat for a separatist group? I always thought that Elections Alberta operated at arm's-length from government, and free from political interference. The UCP passed legislation on July 4, which is obviously designed to make it easier for fringe groups to put a question to Albertans with respect to Alberta's separation from Canada. It's plain to see where the priorities of the UCP lie. Article content Albertans have made it clear that they want to stay with the CPP. But the pension issue is up for discussion again in the recent UCP travelling show. It seems that the UCP will keep on asking the same question over and over again until they get the answer they want. Welcome to democracy in Alberta, UCP style. Article content Article content Love the Cariwest Festival in Edmonton this year. Best parade I've seen in Edmonton. Cariwest is the best reason this city is dubbed the Festival City of Canada. Article content Buff Parry, Edmonton Article content Alberta seniors, are you aware of the UCP's 'new approach to COVID immunization?' Pharmacists are no longer allowed to give COVID shots; the vaccine will only be available from public health clinics. Unlike all other Canadians, you will have to pay for your shot ($80-100) unless you live in a seniors' centre or nursing home or have a medical condition that qualifies you for free vaccine. And don't forget that starting Aug. 11, you must register and pre-order your vaccine. Article content By putting these obstacles in place, COVID vaccination will be unavailable, inaccessible and unaffordable to many Albertans. Good luck if you need elective surgery, emergency, ICU or other hospital care this winter — they will be full of COVID patients. Article content
Global News
3 hours ago
- Global News
Wine, candy and room service: How Ottawa spent $170,000 on Canadian ISIS women
Federal officials spent at least $170,000 bringing Canadian ISIS women home from Syria, according to internal government documents that show expenses for ice cream, candy and wine. The money was for costs incurred when eight women who had traveled to the Middle East to join the Islamic State returned to Canada with their children in 2022 and 2023. Newly-released documents show Global Affairs Canada paid for business class flights, stays at the Montreal Airport Marriott, room service, chips, chocolate bars and Timbits. One hotel room cost over $1,000 for two nights because of a $95 wine tab. Another ran to $850, with charges for junk food and $25 servings of red, white and sparkling wines. The costs included $2,800 for catering, $24 sandwiches at the hotel's Bijou restaurant bar, and $86 worth of snack food and over-the-counter drugs at a hotel gift shop. Story continues below advertisement The expense reports chronicle room service meals of more than $100, books, clothing, travel bags, 'Canadian pins,' and a 'high value token of appreciation' purchased at Best Buy. A server pocketed a $7 tip for serving two $4 teas, according to the expense reports, which also document purchases of Doritos, and Aero and Caramilk bars. The expenses are for both the women and children, as well as the government staff sent to receive them when they landed in Montreal before carrying on to their home provinces. Canadian women in ISIS The women were living in B.C., Alberta, Ontario and Quebec when they left to live under ISIS, which had seized a swath of Syria and Iraq and launched a campaign of beheadings and attacks in the West. Story continues below advertisement As ISIS fell to Kurdish fighters backed by an international coalition, the Canadian women were captured and held with their children for several years at crowded detention camps in Syria. The federal government agreed to bring them back to Canada after their families launched a challenge in Federal Court in Ottawa demanding their return. Two years to release costs Global News requested the documents on the costs of the repatriations under the Access to Information Act two years ago. The department did not release the materials until Aug. 7, 2025. Get daily National news Get the day's top news, political, economic, and current affairs headlines, delivered to your inbox once a day. Sign up for daily National newsletter Sign Up By providing your email address, you have read and agree to Global News' Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy The records do not appear to include the costs of sending Canadian officials to extract the women from Syria, but seem to cover only the bill for receiving them in Montreal. The department wrote in a letter to Global News that it was withholding 50 pages of documents that 'are currently under consultation with a foreign government.' Story continues below advertisement In a statement to Global News on Wednesday, Global Affairs declined to answer questions about its expenses, or disclose the full costs associated with repatriating the Canadians. 'While we cannot comment on specific expenditures related to the operation, Global Affairs Canada assumed certain immediate costs to support the safe return and well-being of the women and children repatriated to Canada,' it said. 'Deeply troubled' A group formed by families of Canadians killed in the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks said it was 'deeply troubled' by the 'extravagant homecoming' the women apparently received. 'Such spending raises serious questions about government priorities, public trust, and the integrity of our system,' said Sheryl Saperia, CEO of Secure Canada. The return of foreign fighters who left to join terrorist groups should prioritize public safety, 'not reward those who betrayed their country and broke the law,' she said. Story continues below advertisement By contrast, she said victims' families have had to pay their own way to attend legal proceedings related to the terror suspects accused of killing their loved ones. 'The stark contrast between how our government treats perpetrators and how it treats their victims should alarm every Canadian and offend every taxpayer.' Over budget The women returned to Canada in three waves starting in October 2022, when Kimberly Polman and Oumaima Chouay came back at a cost of $10,863, according to an entry in the documents. Included in the costs was almost $2,800 for 100 emergency blankets and five first aid kits that were shipped to Syria 'for the operation,' known as CONOP1. A B.C. resident, Polman was allegedly part of an ISIS battalion that trained women to fight. She has been charged with terrorism offences. Story continues below advertisement Chouay, a resident of Montreal, pleaded guilty on July 21 to participating in the activities of ISIS and was sentenced to a symbolic single day in prison. The second repatriation, in April 2023, was the largest, involving the return of four women from Ontario and Alberta, and their 10 kids. Among them was Edmonton's Aimee Vasconez, a Muslim convert who traveled to Syria with her husband Ali Jabbar, who was killed fighting with ISIS. She then married a second ISIS fighter, 'joined an ISIS battalion and has likely been trained in military tactics, weapons and techniques,' the RCMP alleged. Also part of the same operation was Ammara Amjad, of Milton, Ont., who is currently awaiting trail on an ISIS-related terrorism charge. The CONOP2 event was by far the costliest at $132,445, according to an entry in the documents. It also went $25,000 over budget, largely due to what were described as 'higher than expected hotel costs.' CONOP3 Because not all the women showed up for the second repatriation, a third known as CONOP3 had to be organized, at a cost of $27,800, according to the documents. Story continues below advertisement It brought back Helena Carson and Dina Kalouti, sisters-in-law who had left Edmonton with their husbands to join ISIS. The expenses included Werther's candies, a variety pack of Frito-Lay chips, Made Good Red Velvet Soft Baked Mini Cookies, and a Tim Horton's order of 50 Timbits, two dozen doughnuts, 12 coffees and a large Ice Capp. Another expense report noted a US$75 'purchase of 6 turkey & cheese subs and 6 cereal meals' bought from the U.S. military for the women and kids. Carson and Kalouti were arrested upon their return to Canada, and placed on terrorism peace bonds that were scheduled to expire in September. Canadian ISIS men At least four Canadian men are believed to remain in the detention camps in northeast Syria, among them former ISIS sniper Muhammad Ali of Mississauga, Ont. Story continues below advertisement The government has declined to bring them back to Canada, and the Federal Court has ruled that Ottawa is not obliged to repatriate them. ISIS 'still poses a significant threat via its network of provinces, affiliates, related loose online networks, and due to its ability to inspire Canada-based threat actors to commit serious acts of violence,' according to the latest annual report of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
