Canadians won’t have to pay the federal excise tax on gasoline starting Monday, but it turns out most or all of the savings will get eaten up by the annual increase in summer fuel costs.

“Canadians are in desperate need of relief at the moment,” said Dan McTeague, the executive director of the advocacy group Canadians for Affordable Energy, in a news release . “But this is a drop in the bucket.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney announced this week that the federal excise tax on gasoline and diesel will be suspended for five months starting on April 20. That should lower the cost of gas by 10 cents per litre and diesel by four cents.

However, Canadian gas stations are required to switch to summer blends starting April 15, and these are typically 10 cents more per litre, McTeague said.

“It won’t make much of an impact on prices resuming their upward trek based on the fact that this war is going to continue. Even if there is end in sight, the reality is that we have a massive draw down of supplies,” McTeague said.

The winter blend, which is used from Sept. 15, includes different components that help cars start efficiently. In the summer, the formula includes additives that cost more and prevent sparking in warm conditions.

American Gasbuddy analyst Patrick De Haan agrees with McTeague.

“Motorists will still get a 10 cent drop (when the tax is suspended), but instead of it pushing prices down, it may simply prevent them from going up further,” said De Haan. “Motorists may not see a visible 10 cent decline, and they may not see a decline really at all.”

McTeague believes there are two key factors driving up the cost of gas: The Iran war and the weak Canadian dollar.

“The fact that it takes 137 to 138 pennies to buy a U.S. dollar means it’s adding an extra 34 to 35 cents a litre,” said McTeague.

On Friday, Iran announced that it had reopened the Strait of Hormuz, which caused oil prices to fall US$13 to US$83 a barrel, still much higher than the price before the war. However, late Friday, Iran was already threatening to close the strait again, making the situation uncertain.

McTeague said he would rather see the government suspend all federal taxes on fuel and permanently eliminate the Clean Fuel Standard.

“Clean Fuel Standard is already seven cents a litre, going to 20 cents a year by 2030,” said McTeague. “That’s where refiners are required to buy carbon credits to drop their emissions 30 per cent. But since it’s impossible — no such technology exists — they have to buy carbon credits from the carbon market, which they’re passing on to consumers.”

“We content ourselves with believing we have lots of oil, but we do, except we spent a lot of time restricting it,” he said.

For both McTeague and De Haan, an end is not in sight for Canadian gas prices.

“The tax decrease will be passed along, but you may not necessarily see it,” said De Haan. “Because the volatility in oil prices may push oil prices up at the exact time that taxes may be going down.”

Even if the U.S.-Iran war ends soon, an end to high gas prices would still take months according to McTeague.

• Ireland cutting gas tax after wave of blockades and protests cleared
• Will gas prices go up in Canada if war on Iran continues? Energy expert says they already are

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An Ontario man facing 14 murder charges will have those charges dropped by Crown prosecutors and will in turn plead guilty to the lesser charge of counselling or aiding suicide, his lawyer told National Post.

Kenneth Law was arrested in May 2023 following a Times of London  investigation  into his alleged crimes, and charged with 14 counts of second-degree murder in December of that year. Peel Police also charged Law with 14 counts of counselling and aiding suicide.

On Saturday, his lawyer, Matthew Gourlay of Henein Hutchison Robitaille LLP, confirmed to National Post that the murder charges will be dropped and that Law will plead guilty to counselling or aiding suicide.

Canada’s Criminal Code carries an automatic sentence of life in prison for first- or second-degree murder, with no chance for parole for 25 years. However, the charge of counselling or aiding suicide carries a maximum sentence of 14 years.

According to news reports , a date for the plea will be scheduled in May when Law appears before a judge in Newmarket, Ont., on Monday.

Law’s trial had been expected to last eight weeks, after several delays pushed its start date to January 2026 and then to this month. Earlier reporting said Law was expected to plead not guilty to the murder charges.

Law is accused of running websites that sold sodium nitrite, a food additive that is deadly if consumed, and other items that can be used for self-harm, including gas masks.

Investigators believe more than 1,200 packages were sent out globally, and about 160 were sent in Canada.

British police have said they identified 232 people in the United Kingdom, 88 of whom died, who bought products from Canada-based websites allegedly linked to Law.

Authorities in the United States, Italy, Australia and New Zealand have also announced their own investigations.

Police in Canada said 14 alleged victims in this country were between the ages of 16 and 36 and died in communities across Ontario, as far north as Thunder Bay and as far southwest as London.

If you’re thinking about suicide or are worried about a friend or loved one, please contact 9-8-8: Suicide Crisis Helpline by calling or texting 9-8-8 toll free. The service is available 24/7. If you or someone you know is in immediate danger, call 911.

• Who is alleged serial killer Kenneth Law and what is he accused of?
• Toronto rabbi vows to replace torn-down menorah at Yorkville Jewish Centre

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FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. — In this tourist town, only one grave site gets five stars on Google. It belongs to Leslie Nielsen, and 16 years after his death it has become an affectionate shrine to the deadpan funnyman.

The Saskatchewan-born actor, who would have been 100 this year, is buried in Fort Lauderdale’s Evergreen Cemetery. A modest stone marks his final resting place, inscribed with his name, his dates of birth and death, and a fart joke.

“Let ‘er rip,” it says, giving life after death to his favourite running gag.

Piled onto the stone by fans on pilgrimage are multiple whoopee cushions, a fart machine and other novelty toys referencing his late-career roles as a deadpan straight man in some of the silliest movies of the ’80s and ’90s, including Airplane! and various Naked Guns.

He was as well-known for his TV talk show appearances — and for the fart machine he often brought along, inevitably breaking the host up (and only sometimes himself).

Born in Regina and raised in the Northwest Territories and Edmonton, Nielsen enjoyed an acting career in not-quite-leading-man dramatic roles in movies like Forbidden Planet and the Poseidon Adventure, but his legacy comes from his late career renaissance, weaponizing his deadly serious delivery for some of the silliest scenes ever put to film.

Perhaps the best-known such scene was from 1980s Airplane!. In a moment of airborne distress, Nielsen’s physician character asks the movie’s star, Robert Hays, if he can fly a plane.

“Surely you can’t be serious,” Hays, as Ted Striker, asks.

Says Nielsen, serious as a heart attack: “I am serious. And don’t call me Shirley.”

Several Google reviews of the gravesite reference the scene. (“I haven’t been here yet but surely this must be a nice place to visit,” says one. “RIP Shirley,” says another.)

He maintained strong ties to Canada, where his brother Erik Nielsen was deputy prime minister under Brian Mulroney, but he spent his later years in Fort Lauderdale and chose to be buried in a cemetery a stone’s throw from the palm-tree-lined Intercoastal Waterway.

Nielsen once said, “I’ll do anything for a laugh.” That didn’t stop at his 2010 death.

Across from the simple marker is a stone bench inscribed with “‘Sit down whenever you can’ — Leslie Nielsen,” which Atlas Obscura says was Nielsen’s standard advice for any actor or comedian seeking pearls of wisdom.

Several tattered birthday cards remain on the bench; he would have been 100 on Feb. 11.

“I DID NOT FART ON THIS CARD,” says one.

Another includes a written message: “Happy heavenly 100 ^th  birthday, Leslie. Break a leg and break wind. You can’t spell FART without ART.”

• Comedian Leslie Nielsen dead at 84
• Oscar-winning actor Robert Duvall, known for Godfather films and Apocalypse Now, dead at 95

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WASHINGTON, D.C. — Canadian provinces said ça suffit to American booze last year, pulling U.S. alcohol from the shelves in response to U.S. President Donald Trump’s threats to make Canada the 51st U.S. state amid a tariff-laden trade war.

Politicians and provincial premiers supported the bans, and Canada’s drinkers have been encouraged to say “Cheers!” with homegrown grains instead.

All but two provinces, Saskatchewan and Alberta, still have bans — and signs encouraging shoppers with pitches like “Buy Canadian Instead” and “For the good of Ontario. For the good of Canada.”

Prime Minister Mark Carney lightheartedly reminded Canadians of this at the Liberal party national convention in Montreal last weekend, joking about the lack of American bourbon in Canada.

“Anyone had any bourbon recently?” he quipped, drawing cheers. But hidden in his joke was a serious reminder to support the national economy.

Canadians have largely done just that. While overall consumption of alcohol is down — a trend that is true worldwide — exports of U.S. spirits to Canada have fallen, while Canadian spirits sales have increased.

The provincial bans and subsequent drop in U.S. exports have left a bad taste in Washington, and the 2026 National Trade Estimate Report released last month by the U.S. Trade Representative makes it clear that the provincial bans will be a sticking point in the upcoming review of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement this summer.

The Trump administration’s frustration is reflected in some stark trade numbers.

U.S. spirits exports to Canada fell more than 70 per cent year-over-year between March and December 2025, falling from $203 million to $60 million, according to the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States. Statistics Canada’s data show a 68 per cent decline in U.S. alcohol imports.

Once-popular U.S. vodkas, whiskies, and bourbons are nearly impossible to find in most of Canada today. Brown-Forman, the company that owns Jack Daniel’s and Woodford Reserve, for example, reported a 59 per cent plunge in Canadian sales between May 2025 and January 2026.

But the bans haven’t just emptied shelves, they’ve changed drinking habits.

“We got rid of pretty much all of the American‑made whiskey — stopped buying it and haven’t looked back,” said Dan Nolan, co-owner of Tommy’s Speakeatery, a pub and restaurant in Regina, Sask.

Kevin Rusnell, managing partner of OutSpoken Brewing at Peace Restaurant in Sault Ste. Marie, Ont., has replaced U.S. liquors for cocktails, opting instead for more expensive Canadian-made substitutes.

“Plenty of community options are really great, including some really good gins and vodkas, and there’s amazing Canadian whiskey as well,” he said.

Both Rusnell and Nolan say their clients are happy with the alternatives.

“It’s very rare that anyone has any comments about it,” said Nolan.

Most customers are lighthearted about it, he said, and they enjoy joking, like Carney, about the lack of bourbon. Authentic bourbon is the one clear gap, as it’s hard to replicate under Canadian regulations, and bourbon-flavoured alternatives are pricey.

While happy with their customers’ adoption of Canadian booze, both men noted that sales have dropped for their businesses over the past year.

Nolan says his regulars are limiting their visits, which he attributes to the cost-of-living crisis.

“We’ve seen a decrease of about 30 per cent in alcohol sales across both businesses,” said Rusnell, a trend he also attributes to financial constraints.

“People are deciding that going out and paying $10 or $12 for a beer isn’t worth it anymore.”

He added that while Canadian domestic sales are up, it’s not enough. Craft brewers can’t compete with cheaper U.S. production, while facing heavy taxes and regulatory layers, which is raising prices and crushing small operators.

“It’s hurting us, compressing margins, and it’s making some of these businesses nonviable,” Rusnell said, pointing to the recent closures of Manitoulin Brewing in northern Ontario and Giant Brewing in Thunder Bay. He wishes the government would alleviate the industry’s tax burden.

Canadian production is pricier for craft brewers and distilleries alike, which means he’s had to raise prices, but he says he’s happy to support the U.S. bans “as a point of leverage as a country.”

As a result of the sales bans, Canadian wines and spirits have seen their fortunes rise. Data from January 2026, according to LCBO, shows Ontario LQA sales up 52 per cent, with red wine leading the way at 63 per cent, and other wine regions in Canada have enjoyed double-digit sales increases. Canadian whiskey sales have jumped a whopping 94 per cent.

Overall, according to LCBO, Canadian alcohol sales are up 18 per cent.

Kyla Lee, owner of Deep Blue Distilleries, in Richmond, B.C., says she has seen a sustained spike in orders — a tenfold increase.

“Sales have gone up massively,” she said. “The consumers want locally made products. They want to have Canadian-made products and have the money stay in Canada.”

But will the trend stick if trade tensions ease?

Both Lee and Rusnell believe buying habits, once formed, are hard to break.

“People have habits, and once those habits change, it’s hard to ship them back,” Rusnell said. “So I do believe that we’ll continue to sell more Canadian alcohol because of the tariffs and because of the damage that Trump’s done.”

Nolan was less sure. He believes cost-of-living concerns will trump anti-Trump sentiment eventually.

“Once this all subsides … if the tariffs are all gone and you’re not paying that necessary premium, I don’t see why they wouldn’t (revert to U.S. products),” he said.

Such a reversal would please the White House, of course, and trade experts expect friction in the months ahead with the sales bans remaining in place. But lifting the bans isn’t up to Carney, it’s up to the provinces.

“The USTR has been clear that these Canadian provincial alcohol bans are market access barriers and that they greatly conflict with the commitments made under USMCA,” said Andrew Hale, fellow for trade, economics, and international relations at D.C.-based Advancing American Freedom.

“What some American officials fail to appreciate is that Canada is not a union like the United States but a confederation where the provinces have more power and autonomy than the individual American states,” he added.

In other words, undoing the bans will require persuasion province by province, not pressure from the White House alone.

National Post

• 'Explosive growth': Canada's wine regions are thriving thanks to Trump's trade war
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Canadian psychologist, best-selling author and media commentator Jordan Peterson is battling akathisia again, an “old neurological injury” that his daughter said was triggered by his past use of psychiatric medication.

In an exhaustive and occasionally tearful video update shared Saturday, Mikhaila Peterson described what she said has been a devastating year for the family, centred on her father’s deteriorating health and a relapse of symptoms he first experienced years ago.

“It’s been hellish,” the 34-year-old said in her 33-minute statement.

Akathisia is a condition marked by intense inner restlessness, agitation and an inability to remain still, according to the Cleveland Clinic. The condition is most commonly associated with the side effects from certain medications, particularly antipsychotics, antidepressants and benzodiazepines, though it can arise in other ways.

“It is intolerable discomfort that makes people want to crawl out of their skin,” she said. “A lot of people do not survive it, and there is no quick fix.”

According to the Cleveland Clinic, akathisia is not fatal, but can cause “a poor quality of life” and lead to severe anxiety, dysphoria and suicidal ideation.

Mikhaila said she had a “brief experience” with the condition when she was withdrawing from Lexapro about a decade ago, and while her symptoms were not as severe as her father’s is currently experiencing, she claimed to be “nearly disabled” for over two and a half years.

Last year, Mikhaila announced that Peterson was stepping back from public engagements after being diagnosed with chronic inflammatory response syndrome (CIRS), stressing at the time that it wasn’t related to akathisia.

Peterson, 62, fought to defeat a benzodiazepine addiction in 2019 — seeking treatment in Russia at the time — and developed akathisia in the aftermath, but Mikhaila said in her video that he has not taken any psychiatric medication since January.

Instead, she attributed the relapse to a combination of extreme stress over the last year from the deaths of both of his parents, relocation to the U.S. and the sale of their family home in Toronto, and mould exposure that caused the CIRS.

“This has been unbelievably hard on my family,” she said, describing months of daily distress and uncertainty as doctors allegedly misdiagnosed the condition before Peterson also developed pneumonia and sepsis last October.

But Mikhaila said her father’s condition “is improving now that we understand it as a neurological injury and are focusing on time, recovery, and avoiding triggers.

“There is light at the end of the tunnel.”

One of the drivers for making the update, she said, was to share her research into akathisia and some of the risks associated with long-term use of psychiatric medication. To that end, and “out of frustration,” she created Prescribed-harm.com , a website where visitors can share their experiences and access dozens of papers on topics related to medication dangers, akathisia, and other topics.

And while she said on X that she “will be jumping up and down about psych med injury awareness from now on,” she said people finding success with the drugs shouldn’t feel pressured to taper.

“Do your research but don’t get concerned from this video and destabilize a stable situation without knowing the risks,” she wrote.

Mikhaila, who is currently 25 weeks pregnant with her second child, said there are no further updates on Peterson’s health planned, as it causes the family too much stress and there’s “nothing more to say about it until things get better.”

Warning for people on psych meds listening - if you’ve been taking a psych med, particularly a benzodiazepine long term and are stable, don’t feel pressured to taper. Do your research but don’t get concerned from this video and destabilize a stable situation without knowing the…

— Mikhaila Peterson (@MikhailaFuller) April 18, 2026

• Jordan Peterson taking time off to fight new health setback, according to his daughter
• Jordan Peterson's house in Toronto up for sale as he and his wife relocate to the U.S.

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Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston is hard not to admire. He’s not your typical status-quo accountant or cautious politician.

Houston has no interest in managing Nova Scotia’s decline. He wants to reverse course and spark a genuine cultural shift — “back to a sense that we can build things, we can do things. We just have to have the courage and confidence to do it.”

Last year, he took on the energy minister portfolio himself. This week, he appointed Stephen MacDonald, former CEO of EfficiencyOne, as deputy minister of energy. Together, they will aggressively pitch Nova Scotia as a practical antidote to global energy insecurity — rolling out the welcome mat to investors who can unlock the province’s substantial untapped potential in offshore oil, onshore and offshore natural gas, offshore wind, and geothermal.

His timing is excellent. Nova Scotia sits on one of the largest undeveloped hydrocarbon basins in the North Atlantic, while the world scrambles for reliable, affordable energy.

Yet Houston is smart enough to know that hungry investors alone won’t transform the province. His deeper challenge is rebuilding a culture of confidence and can-do spirit among Nova Scotia’s 1.09 million residents. The boldness of his vision is designed to inspire exactly that.

It’s a tall order. On a per-capita basis, Nova Scotia ranks 59th out of 60 North American jurisdictions (U.S. states and Canadian provinces) according to the latest comparable GDP data from 2024 — one of the weakest performers on the continent.

“It wasn’t that long ago that every single community in our province was thriving, whether it was fishing and shipbuilding, farming or mining,” Houston told me in a recent interview. But over time, he says, “we kind of got away from that, and we started to say ‘no.’ We banned sectors and put moratoriums on.”

The province is now running billion-dollar deficits for the second year in a row. “People want more and more from governments at a time when we’re still spending way more than we’re taking in,” he laments. As a chartered accountant turned premier, Houston knows tough choices are unavoidable. Just this week, neighbouring Prince Edward Island tabled its 2026-27 budget, projecting the largest deficit in its history.

When I asked about this year’s Nova Scotia budget — which included some deep cuts that were partially reversed after public backlash — he was refreshingly candid. “I think we got maybe a little bit too clinical and a little less human in some of the situations.” In an era of political spin, his willingness to admit the government got it wrong and apologize publicly is noteworthy.

Houston’s determination to revive the province’s economy echoes what former Newfoundland and Labrador premier Andrew Furey once said about how offshore oil helped shift the psyche of Newfoundlanders and Labradorians — moving them away from feelings of vulnerability and “have-not” status toward hope, pride and self-reliance.

At 56, Houston speaks with the energy of a younger man and zero cynicism. His vision occasionally sounds like it could come from Prime Minister Mark Carney’s nation-building playbook, but it doesn’t feel scripted. There is real conviction, not desperation, in his drive to put Nova Scotia back on the North American energy map.

In 2025, his Progressive Conservative government lifted both the onshore fracking moratorium and the decades-old ban on uranium exploration and mining. Offshore gas production, idle for seven years, is getting a second life. Last summer, the Canada-Nova Scotia Offshore Energy Regulator opened new exploration licence rounds, with bids due this month.

Early this year, the province opened a data room full of seismic and technical data to help companies evaluate onshore natural gas opportunities. To sweeten the pot and de-risk investment, the government committed $30 million — a big number for Nova Scotia — to a research and development program run by Dalhousie University that will kick-start exploratory drilling this summer.

In March, Houston and Carney jointly spotlighted the ambitious Wind West offshore wind project as a “nation-building” initiative. With potential for more than 40 gigawatts ultimately, and an initial 5 GW phase targeted for around 2033, it could be one of Canada’s largest clean energy developments.

Houston admits challenges remain, especially the $15-billion transmission cable needed to bring the offshore wind power to market, but he’s encouraged by Hydro-Québec’s recent call for expressions of interest to build it. There’s also growing interest in data centres, he adds, helped by the fact that major transatlantic cables from Europe land in Halifax.

This isn’t being directed from behind a desk. Houston is racking up the air miles, personally courting investors and industry leaders. “Saying you’re open for business just doesn’t cut it,” he says. “You have to show up.”

In recent months he’s been at multiple key industry conferences — CERAWeek in Houston, the PDAC mining conference in Toronto,  a major offshore wind event in New York. Earlier this month he co-hosted a roundtable with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith. He’s heading back to Texas soon and will attend an upcoming offshore wind conference in Spain.

The conditions for a fresh look at Nova Scotia are encouraging; robust global demand and prices for oil and gas, energy-hungry European markets within reach, and a province that sits on major resources yet produces virtually none while paying high costs to import energy.

Still, Houston harbours no illusions. He is competing for capital in a market that often tilts south. Practical hurdles remain — there are currently no drilling rigs in the province. “One of the major producers told me they have 20,000 drill prospects, just in Western Canada,” he says. “So to get them to focus on Atlantic Canada … it’s a long way away.”

Yet he sees growing collaboration across provinces. He speaks warmly of his partnership with Smith: “We work really closely. They’ve been very helpful. I think they can see the benefits to the country if we have another producer here.”

He is optimistic that some Canadian producers will seize a foothold in Nova Scotia. While neighbouring New Brunswick also sits on significant gas resources, he notes, the province retains its fracking ban.

“I’m investing a lot of political capital in this,” Houston says, “political capital that many people aren’t willing to invest. If we can get the Nova Scotia industry moving in a positive way, then others will follow. They just won’t lead.”

National Post

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With the latest warning from Canada’s Integrated Threat Assessment Centre stating that a violent mass attack remains a realistic possibility, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs is urging Ottawa to increase funding for enhanced security in the upcoming Spring Economic Statement . security

“We’ve seen synagogues and businesses in the community targeted with gunfire recently in Toronto. That builds on the arson attacks and shooting attacks that had taken place previously, targeting synagogues and schools across the country,” says Noah Shack, CIJA’s CEO. “We need systemic change to protect the community.”

In an April 15 letter to Prime Minister Mark Carney, CIJA estimates that annual security costs within Canadian Jewish communities will reach $100 million.

The letter has been endorsed by more than 80 Jewish federations, community centres, synagogues, camps and schools.

“Rising security demands are forcing cuts and scaling back services, placing a growing strain on the future of Jewish life across the country,” states the letter. It also harkens back to a Liberal party statement made in the federal election campaign that “increased security costs amidst rising antisemitism should not be borne by the Jewish community alone.”

However, CIJA estimates that Canada’s per-capita investment in Jewish community security is one-third of the United Kingdom’s and one-quarter of Australia’s.

Shack raises the tragedy in Bondi Beach, Australia, when a father-son gunmen team killed 15 people, including 11 men, 3 women and a 10-year-old girl.

“Our hope is that we can get vital security measures in place before that happens here in Canada. To be proactive and preventative here,” says Shack.

Meanwhile, he adds that CIJA is very grateful for efforts that have already been undertaken by national security and local law enforcement agencies, “who have been able to prevent a number of these attacks plotted against our community.”

The sought-after funds would be channelled through the Canada Community Security Program , which CIJA says is an “essential program (that) provides life-saving security equipment and measures to safeguard our people. We cannot afford to wait for a mass-casualty attack before taking urgent action to safeguard Canadians.”

There are about 70 Jewish institutions in Montreal, estimates David Cooper, vice president of government relations for CIJA. In Toronto, there is probably double or triple that, he adds.

He says the $100 million estimate covers infrastructure costs, plus the amount community institutions “are paying for security guards, which has become an expensive endeavour for institutions to take on themselves.”

He remembers when he went to synagogue and “the doors were open, and we walked in, and nobody thought twice about security. Now, it’s a completely different reality.”

• 'Dangerously escalating": Jewish-owned Toronto restaurant becomes 12th target of antisemitic violence
• ‘Bullets are flying': Two more Toronto-area synagogues hit by gunfire

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A man assaulted six years ago by a guard while he was a prisoner at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary has been awarded $65,000 in damages.

Kelsey Stewart took the federal government to court seeking $240,000 in damages for his injuries, and to deter similar assaults in the future.

“The Attorney General of Canada (AGC), acting on behalf of Correctional Service Canada, admitted that the use of force during this incident was not proportionate to the circumstances. The AGC accepted that some damages should be paid to Mr. Stewart as a result of the injuries he suffered but proposed a significantly lower amount, in the range of $5,000–$15,000,” Federal Court Justice William F. Pentney wrote in a recent decision.

• Growing surge in prison violence 'a problem right across the country’
• Accused female killer convicted for vicious jail yard assault of suspected informant

Three guards asked Stewart to leave his cell for a routine search around 10:15 a.m. on Feb. 4, 2020, said the April 16 decision.

Stewart, a medium-security prisoner at the time, didn’t want to comply, but after a short discussion with one of the guards, he agreed to leave his cell.

“You started to back out of your cell, with your hands up behind your head,” Pentney said.

“As you got close to the cell door, (one of the guards) reached out his hands and put them by your side, up near your armpits, to guide you out through the cell door. Once you were in the cell doorway, (the same guard) suddenly slammed you — hard — against the cell door.”

The guard in question produced a written report indicating that Stewart “turned violently” towards him, said the decision.

“Based on the video evidence, I don’t believe that you ‘turned violently’ or really that you turned much, if at all,” said the judge.

The guard “had no good reason to slam you against the cell door so hard,” Pentney said. “He is much bigger than you, and you had your back to him with your hands up by your head. You started to lower your hands and put them behind your back, so when he pushed you against the cell door you had no way to protect your face from hitting the bars on the door. At that point you did not look threatening in any way; you were still facing the back of your cell and the guards were behind you.”

After one guard pinned Stewart against the cell door with his body, another guard “grabbed” Stewart’s right wrist “and held it in a wrist lock,” said the judge.

The guard who slammed him against the cell door was pushing up against Stewart, Pentney said.

“It is hard to know exactly what was happening, but it is clear he was using force against your left side. He rocks back and forth, and you may have been struggling a bit, but he had you pinned against the cell door and (another guard) had control of your only free hand.”

Things “calmed down” after a short time and the guards patted Stewart down, then moved him to another area so they could search his cell. They returned him to his cell after the search.

“Around 2 p.m. that afternoon, a nurse visited your cell to do a post-use of force interview. That was recorded. The video shows injuries to the right side of your face — a cut by your eyebrow and a cut on your right cheek, plus some scratches. The video also shows that the left side of your face by your mouth was quite swollen. You told the nurse that you had been punched on that side. The nurse later took you to the nursing station and glued the cut by your right eyebrow. The wound re-opened later and then stitches were put in to keep it closed. You were sent to an eye doctor because you said your vision was blurry. By your second appointment, your vision had returned to normal.”

Pentney said he watched the surveillance videos “many times,” but “they do not show clearly” that the guard who slammed Stewart against the cell door was punching him.

“He may have been punching you with his left hand — these would have been short punches (sometimes called ‘rabbit punches’) because his arm never goes back to ‘wind up’ and punch you,” said the judge.

“He may have been slamming against the left side of your face with his forearm. It is just not clear. But he was using some type of force against you on your left side; that much is clear from the videos.”

He found that the guard “used some kind of additional force against the left side of your face after he had you pinned against the cell door. The video taken after the incident clearly shows that the left side of your face was noticeably swollen.”

Based on videos, testimony and written evidence, Pentney found that the injuries on the left side of Stewart’s face “were caused by the additional use of force by (the guard) after he had pinned you against the cell door. He might have punched you. Maybe he hit you with his left forearm. Whatever happened, I find that the injuries to both sides of your face were caused by an unjustified and unlawful use of force” by the guard.

The judge said he couldn’t make a general finding that the Correctional Service of Canada “needs to change its discipline approach or take other steps to prevent” the guard who injured Stewart “from continuing to have contact with inmates. The evidence just does not support that.”

But Pentney said he could recognize that the harm Stewart “experienced was made worse because of your situation as an inmate, subject to the authority of (correctional officers). That made you vulnerable to the assault.”

The judge also found that Stewart “did not provoke the attack and there appears to be no justification for such a sudden and violent action.”

He awarded Stewart $50,000 for the battery.

“I also find that the use of force violated your right to security of the person under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms,” said the judge. “The Charter is a very important law in Canada and breaking it is a very serious thing. That is what happened here. I am awarding you $15,000 in damages for the breach of your Charter right.”

The total is “a lot more than the government said you should receive,” Pentney said. “Part of the reason I chose that amount is that you experienced immediate and some continuing pain and suffering as a result of the assault, and you should be compensated for that. A portion of the money is to recognize the serious way your Charter right was violated.”

The judge also awarded Stewart $9,000 to cover his legal costs and another $1,246 in disbursements.

Reached Friday, Kelsey Stewart’s lawyer wouldn’t say if his client is still incarcerated or not. Regina Police issued a wanted notice last month for a man of the same name.

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Flights between Canadian destinations have jumped by an average of $158 so far this year, an increase of 70 per cent.

That’s according to new data from travel search engine KAYAK, which has launched a new Airfare Trends Dashboard offering Canada‑specific insights into fluctuating flight prices.

The steepest increase is for domestic flights to Vancouver, where average fares rose from $191 to $413, or 116 per cent.

Elsewhere, flights to Calgary have climbed from an average of $212 to $361 since January, while airfares to Montreal have increased to $489 and Toronto-bound flights to $366 (increases of 29 per cent and 74 per cent respectively).

Meanwhile, international flights from Canada have also gone up, from an average of $1,052 in January to $1,173 in April (an increase of 12 per cent).

KAYAK compiled the data by comparing flight searches made on the platform on a weekly basis and calculating average prices for economy, round-trip tickets.

While an increase in price between the start of the year and spring is not unusual, as travellers plan for summer getaways, KAYAK’s year-on-year comparisons suggest additional factors might be driving the surge.

Airfares have risen sharply compared to 2025, with the average cost of a domestic flight in Canada up 26 per cent in April 2026 compared to the same time period last year.

International flights have seen a more modest year-over-year increase of three per cent.

In recent weeks, airlines around the world have adjusted prices as a result of the war in Iran, as rising oil prices and reduced capacity on some routes due to instability in the Middle East drive costs up.

In Canada, WestJet, Porter Airlines, Air Transat and Air Canada Vacations (a subsidiary of Air Canada) have all announced new surcharges.

Other global carriers, including Qantas, SAS and Air New Zealand, have also increased airfares.

Anita Emilio, executive vice president of Flight Centre Canada , previously told National Post in an interview: “One of the greatest costs for an airline is the fuel that’s required to transport travellers to destinations. When you have the price of fuel being pressured, the airlines have almost no other recourse but to introduce a fuel surcharge.”

However, there may soon be some relief for travellers.

U.S. President Donald Trump confirmed on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz is “fully open” to all commercial ships for the remainder of the ceasefire.

Oil prices have plunged since Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi first announced the news , with Brent crude dropping 11 per cent to around US$88 a barrel.

Meanwhile, not every Canadian location has seen flight prices increase.

Airfares to Halifax are an average of 10 per cent cheaper this year, down from $350 last April to $315 this month.

Kayla DeLoache, KAYAK travel trends expert, said in a press release on Thursday: “Airfare trends are evolving differently across routes. While some are getting more expensive, others are seeing prices decline.

“For example, flights to destinations like Halifax, Nova Scotia and Paris, France are down as much as 10 per cent. Looking at how prices are changing week to week can help travellers make more informed decisions about when and where to travel.”

• Air Canada suspends some U.S. flights due to jet fuel prices as oil crisis hits Europe
• Here's the best time to book a flight as rising fuel costs push Canadian airfares higher

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OTTAWA — Nova Scotia’s highest trial court has struck down the province’s sweeping summer 2025 ban on entering the woods.

Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Jamie S. Campbell found in a decision released on Friday that the wildfire season activity restrictions unduly limited the Charter-protected mobility rights of Nova Scotians to “move freely around the province.”

Campbell said in a 17-page decision that there was no evidence of forethought of how the ban would affect the Charter rights of Nova Scotians, making it impermissible on administrative grounds.

“There was no evidence in the record… there was any consideration given to mobility rights, how the ban could limit those rights and how the ban could be drafted in a way to to minimize (those) limitations,” wrote Campbell. “As a matter of administrative law, the travel ban was unreasonable.”

Campbell qualified that his objection was to the way the ban was proclaimed, not necessarily the ban itself.

“A travel ban in the woods may have been an entirely justifiable limitation on mobility rights given the extraordinary circumstances that presented themselves in the summer of 2025,” he wrote. “But the Minister had to have considered that before the proclamation was issued.”

Then-natural resources minister Tory Rushton placed extensive restrictions on travel and recreation in wooded areas on Aug. 5, after weeks of dry, hot weather created an extreme wildfire risk. The near-total ban made the woods off-limits for hiking, trail running, camping and other recreational activities. The ban was mostly lifted on Sep. 18 with some areas remaining closed until Oct. 15.

Premier Tim Houston announced the same day that the penalty for violating the order would be $25,000.

The so-called “hiking ban” quickly sparked criticism across Canada, including from some conservative politicians . One of its most visible opponents was Canadian Armed Forces veteran Jeffrey Evely, who videotaped himself defying the ban on August 8. Everly was handed a $28,872.50 fine for the stunt.

Evely was one of the plaintiffs in Friday’s decision, joined by civil rights group the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF).

Campbell also criticized the government for not communicating more clearly which areas and activities were off limits.

“The case has been decided on other grounds. Had it not been, there is a compelling argument that the ban was so vague as to be incapable of being interpreted at all,” wrote Campbell.

The ruling didn’t direct the government to take any action, since the order has already expired.

Marty Moore, one of Evely’s lawyers, said the ruling reaffirms governments must respect personal freedoms, even during emergencies. He also expected the decision to lead to Evely’s fine being invalidated.

“We hope this judicial rebuke will lead to more reasonable decisions by the government of Nova Scotia in the future,” said Moore.

Inquiries to Rushton and the premier’s office weren’t immediately returned.

National Post
rmohamed@postmedia.com

• Man walks into Nova Scotia forest, walks out with $28K fine: 'I want to challenge this order in court'
• Conservative MP says federal inaction on wildfires led to Atlantic Canada forest bans

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