This year’s federal election will have many strands that influence it, including the ‘freedom’ protest movement and its interaction with right-wing populist politics.
With the occupation of parliament grounds entering its second week, police walk a thin blue line between enforcing the law and not inflaming the situation.
Canada’s ‘us against them’ COVID-19 strategy is amplifying social division, creating major psychosocial impacts, and has resulted in a significant decrease in trust toward authorities.
Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt is concerned that the U-turn on vaccine mandates for NHS staff will make it harder to implement them in the future.
Most Canadians support government measures to help control the spread of COVID-19, according to a public opinion study. But they’re growing weary of the pandemic.
The arrival of the highly infectious Omicron variant has changed the COVID landscape in Australia. We asked 5 experts whether it’s time to rethink vaccine mandates for dining, fitness and events.
GoFundMe claims it won’t fund campaigns that promote hate or misinformation. So why is it backing the so-called freedom convoy that’s currently causing so much incendiary disruption in Ottawa?
The antagonism driven by political interference in COVID-19 vaccination is fuelling hesitancy. Mass vaccination campaigns require public buy-in via trusted health-care providers and community leaders.
When the ‘freedom convoy’ heads home, governments will be keen to avoid similar events. Angry protest movements are volatile and have lasting consequences, as the rise of Trumpism shows.
In a time-honoured tradition of Canadian democracy, government regulations become public when they appear in the Canada Gazette. That’s why Ottawa’s proposal to bypass that step is so troublesome.
Having exhausted policy tools to convince vaccination holdouts to change their minds, it seems little can be gained from additional vaccine mandates than further weakening social cohesion.
Can the government mandate vaccines? Canadians have rights to make decisions about vaccination, but these rights are not absolute, and do not mean those decisions will have no consequences.
The court appears split over the future of vaccination mandates, with conservative justices skeptical of the Biden administration’s authority to enforce requirements.
Through lockdowns, vaccine mandates and the spectre of mass death, the pandemic has uprooted our lives and challenged us to think differently about ethics. What might the future hold?
Bad laws, political tribalism and cancel culture – philosopher Arthur Prior was describing similar things in the 1950s, and his challenge is just as relevant today.
Visiting Professor in Biomedical Ethics, Murdoch Children's Research Institute; Distinguished Visiting Professor in Law, University of Melbourne; Uehiro Chair in Practical Ethics, University of Oxford
Paediatrician at the Royal Childrens Hospital and Associate Professor and Clinician Scientist, University of Melbourne and MCRI, Murdoch Children's Research Institute