Andrea Woo

@andreawoo.bsky.social

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Journalist at The Globe and Mail, based in Vancouver. AndreaWoo@globeandmail.com instagram.com/andreawoo

Let’s play time machines. Balogun’s iffy red card stands, as it should have. The U.S. goes out and gets hammered by the same score. What do people say? Tough break. Poor Balogun. They handled it with class. Great tournament though. Terrible government, but maybe we’ve been too hard on the rest of them. Now what happens? The U.S. goes out, gets hammered and people don’t just resent them, they’re laughing at them. They are a punchline. All the goodwill they’d earned in the first few weeks of this tournament has evaporated. They aren’t just cheaters. They’re bad cheaters.
“I have seen the public comments regarding the decision of the independent FIFA Disciplinary Committee related to the suspension of Folarin Balogun, and I would like to reiterate a fundamental principle of FIFA’s governance. “FIFA’s judicial bodies are independent. They operate autonomously, apply the FIFA Disciplinary Code, and decide cases based on the applicable regulations and the specific facts before them. Their independence is essential to the credibility and integrity of football, and this must always be respected. “Yes, I regularly discuss matters related to the FIFA World Cup with the President of the United States, and on this matter, I did receive a call from President Donald Trump, just as I receive calls from heads of state, government officials, football stakeholders and business executives from around the world on many different issues. During our conversation, I explained that there was an ongoing legal process involving FIFA’s independent judicial bodies and that the case would be decided in due course by the competent bodies. That is how FIFA’s system works, and it is a principle that I will always uphold. “I read the decisions of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee when they are issued. Sometimes I am surprised by them. Sometimes I agree with them, and sometimes I disagree. “What I always do, however, is respect those decisions and the autonomy of the bodies that make them. Whether we personally like a decision or not is irrelevant. Respect for independent institutions and the rule of law is what protects the integrity of our competitions and the credibility of FIFA at all times.”
Yesterday’s decision to suspend for a probationary period of a year the implementation of the one-match automatic suspension following the red card issued to the player Folarin Balogun crossed a red line. Football, like any other sports, relies on rules, which are the basis for fair, honest and transparent competition. Sometimes rules are open to interpretation. In this case not. A minimum automatic suspension of one match following a red card is not a discretionary option and does not require the decision of a competent body to be enacted. It is a principle embedded in regulations, which cannot be made subject to exceptions, let alone in the middle of a tournament where several other players have been in the same situation and regularly served their suspension. When the certainty of rules is no longer guaranteed by its guardians, the integrity of the game is at stake and the credibility of a competition is undermined. Equally, such decision creates a precedent in the ongoing tournament, where similar situations will now require an equal treatment, to the detriment of the competition. Football is the most loved sport in the world because it is a beautiful game and is trusted because it is played everywhere with the same laws. A tournament is never a pure standalone and, if the tournament in question is the World Cup, it has the power to drive positive or negative consequences on the game as a whole. We express our disbelief at such an unprecedented, incomprehensible and unjustifiable decision.
NDP Leader Avi Lewis: “Today’s announcement shows what this federal government will protect above all else: the profits of Big Oil. As we mark the five-year anniversary of a heat dome that killed 619 people in BC – and as many communities across the country are facing extreme weather right now – Canadians deserve leadership that protects us. Instead, this government is doubling down on yesterday’s failed solutions and dragging us into further danger, risk and insecurity. The opaque and confusing public-private partnership ownership structure means it's very likely that we, the public, will not only bear the risks and the damages, but also the lion's share of costs. Canada’s New Democrats unequivocally oppose this pipeline proposal. If anything, this is a pipeline to the courts. It ignores the federal government’s legal responsibility to meaningfully consult Indigenous nations, including Treaty 8 nations in Alberta, threatens endangered species, and accelerates climate change. It will sow the very divisions the PM claims he wants to avoid. We do not achieve unity or prosperity from projects that pit communities against one another, all while a handful of oil and gas CEOs walk away with enormous profits. While we're stuck fighting yesterday's battles over pipelines and the PM openly admits that our emissions will rise, the rest of the world is racing ahead on renewables. We cannot afford to fall behind while other countries build the industries of the future. Canadians deserve better than being told our only choice is another fight over another pipeline. This country needs an alternative to the Liberal-Conservative consensus that is doubling down on a future of climate-wrecking corporate welfare. New Democrats are ready to build something bigger, safer and better – a Canada that is a renewable energy superpower, w/ an east-west clean electricity grid and good green jobs in every region. Lower costs for families with home retrofits and heat pumps for all
Opioids have already claimed the lives of many at-risk users The toll of opioid toxicity in Canada has been staggering, with more than 53,300 deaths over the past decade. The sheer extent of these deaths may factor into why fatality rates are now dropping. “The theory is that, in terms of the population of people who use drugs, so many of them have died that there aren’t as many people that are going to be at risk to die,” said Dr. Huyer, Ontario’s chief coroner. “It’s a difficult theory to prove or disprove,” he said. Year-over-year rates of fatal opioid poisoning are declining most profoundly in regions that have seen the most deaths, including B.C., Alberta, Saskatchewan and Ontario. These provinces saw notable declines in death rates in 2024 compared to 2023. But PHAC said this trend is not being seen in the country’s eastern provinces. “Regions where the crisis started later, such as Quebec, Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia, saw fewer changes or even increasing death rates,” PHAC said. Those three provinces, which have the lowest death rates in Canada, saw increases of 20 and 22 per cent, and a decrease of 7 per cent, respectively. The deaths to date are a “likely” driver of declining mortality rates, according to PHAC, which says that regional trends are also at work in some demographic groups hit hardest by the opioid overdose crisis. Deaths among 30- to 59-year-olds, which rose and had remained high since the pandemic, declined sharply in 2024 relative to other age groups, PHAC said.
Over the past decade, smoking has far surpassed injecting as the most common mode of illicit drug consumption in Canada. People who use drugs have said it gives them greater perceived control over dosing and reduces risks from injecting, such as vein damage and blood-borne infections. George Karandinos, a clinician investigator at Massachusetts General Hospital and Harvard Medical School, is lead author of a peer-reviewed study that found people who primarily smoked opioids died at two-thirds the rate of those who primarily injected them. The study was published in January, 2025, in the journal Addiction. In an interview, Dr. Karandinos said injection drug use is strongly associated with serious infections of the heart and bones, which can be fatal. Meanwhile, smoking allows a user to start with smaller test doses, or split a dose over several administrations, reducing overdose risk.
In March, 2016, as the drug crisis intensified, Health Canada removed the prescription requirement for naloxone, making the opioid overdose-reversing medication widely accessible. The life-saving kits can be administered by anyone and are often provided free of charge at participating pharmacies, harm-reduction and social-service sites, hospitals and schools. Several provinces have required that naloxone be available in certain settings, such as at schools in B.C. and construction worksites and nightclubs in Ontario. Naloxone distribution tripled between 2020 and 2024, and PHAC said this has likely had a major impact on death rates: “All provinces with substantial naloxone distribution experienced notable mortality decline.” Kit Young Hoon, medical officer of health for the Northwestern Health Unit in Ontario, said her region has put a lot of effort into making the medication widely available. There, fatal opioid overdoses are triple the provincial average but are no longer growing. “I think we have the highest rates of naloxone distribution across the province,” Dr. Hoon said. “I think that’s hopefully a reason why there’s a little bit of a plateau.”
When the flow of fentanyl precursors tightened, the illicit market adapted. At Toronto’s Drug Checking Service, an analysis of 1,200 fentanyl samples checked in 2024 found an average sample contained about 5 per cent of the powerful synthetic opioid, which can be lethal in minuscule doses. But by 2025, the average concentration of fentanyl had dropped to 2 per cent among 1,300 samples, the lab found. At the same time, the service’s executive director Karen McDonald said lab analyses showed a significant decrease in the presence of benzodiazepines, a central nervous system depressant that can increase the risk of respiratory depression and overdose when combined with opioids. While those two factors are likely contributors to the drop in deaths, the rapid emergence of another substance has complicated overdoses, and overdose response. The veterinary sedative medetomidine, first detected in December, 2023, was found in roughly 40 per cent of fentanyl samples a year later, Ms. McDonald said. Of 58 fentanyl samples checked so far this January, medetomidine was present in 83 per cent.
In November, 2023, then-U.S. president Joe Biden and Chinese President Xi Jinping met in California, where Washington extracted a promise from Beijing to crack down on Chinese companies exporting fentanyl and the precursor chemicals used to make the drug. As China ramped up law enforcement, its leading body for drug control published warnings against selling those substances. Around the same time, people using the deadly drugs in North America reported in online posts they were increasingly encountering fentanyl “droughts.” By 2024, analyses showed the amount of fentanyl present in seized drugs in both Canada and the U.S. was falling sharply. Researchers now hypothesize that a “supply shock” has arisen in North America, with the scarcity contributing to less lethal, albeit still dangerous, street opioids. Drug researchers posit this theory in a new study published this January in the peer-reviewed academic journal Science, which observes that fentanyl purity and overdose deaths fell at roughly the same time. Mexican cartels are now shipping less-potent fentanyl to the U.S., and Canadian traffickers are synthesizing more opioids chemically similar to fentanyl, called fentanyl analogues, the researchers noted. The far-reaching changes likely stem from a clampdown originating in China, said Jonathan Caulkins, a professor of operations research and public policy at Carnegie Mellon University. “There are instances in which a supply shock is just a hiccup,” he said in an interview. “And there are instances in which the supply shock kind of breaks the momentum of an epidemic.”
As U.S. President Donald Trump marked his 80th birthday on Sunday, his approval ratings remained low, gas prices remained high and his normally iron grip over congressional Republicans appeared to be slipping. Even the day’s good news – that Iran had agreed to reopen the Strait of Hormuz – merely restored the status quo before Mr. Trump launched his war on the country in February. But it didn’t stop the President from a birthday celebration as contentious as it was unusual: seven Ultimate Fighting Championship bouts on the White House lawn, branded as a celebration of the 250th anniversary of U.S. independence.
Victoria – The BC Prosecution Service (BCPS) announced today that on February 9, 2026, Gail Barnes was appointed as a Special Prosecutor involving an investigation being conducted by the North District Prince George RCMP into allegations against Jordan Kealy. Mr. Kealy is the Member of the Legislative Assembly for Peace River North. The appointment of a Special Prosecutor is intended to avoid any potential for real or perceived improper influence in the administration of justice considering the nature of the allegations and the identity of the accused as an elected public official. Ms. Barnes is a senior Vancouver lawyer in private practice. Her mandate includes providing legal advice to investigators as may be necessary, conducting any related charge assessment, and assuming conduct of the prosecution if any charge was approved. The BCPS policy on Special Prosecutors and a related Information Sheet can be found at: Special Prosecutors (SPE 1) Role of Special Prosecutors The charge assessment guidelines to be applied by the Special Prosecutor, which are the same as those applied by regular Crown Counsel, are established in BCPS policy and are available at: Charge Assessment Guidelines (CHA 1) On June 3, 2026, Mr. Kealy was charged with one count of sexual assault on Fort St. John Provincial Court file number 39996-1. The alleged offences occurred between January 1 and September 20, 2024, in Fort St. John. The first appearance is on July 6, 2026, at Fort St. John Law Courts. Following consultation with the Special Prosecutor, the BCPS concluded that issuing a media statement was appropriate at this time. As these matters are now before the court, neither the Special Prosecutor nor the BCPS will be releasing additional information or commenting further at this time
Screen shot of a tweet from Elenore Sturko, which reads as follows: "I left policing and joined politics because I wanted to make a real difference and represent British Columbians from all walks of life. The results of last night’s BC Conservative leadership race have left a void in the political landscape for those who are looking for an alternative to NDP incompetence. I feel strongly that British Columbia is best served when it is represented by a government that values broad perspectives and stays away from polarizing extremes. I believe that the majority of British Columbians feel the same. I remain committed to serving my constituents and all those who believe in a fiscally responsible, forward thinking, inclusive government."
“Vancouver continues to experience the highest rates of unregulated drug deaths in B.C. During this public health emergency, it is critical that people at risk of overdose have access to timely supports and services that save lives and help prevent serious harms, including brain injury. “Vancouver Coastal Health is working to establish overdose-prevention services in Vancouver’s downtown core and recognizes the importance of ensuring these services support both vulnerable people in need of care and the businesses, residents and workers in surrounding neighbourhoods. “Since intentions were announced to open a new overdose-prevention site on 900 Helmcken St., I, along with my colleague, Terry Yung, Minister of State for Community Safety and Integrated Services, and MLA for Vancouver-Yaletown, have heard concerns from the city, local businesses and community partners. We, along with the Ministry of Health and Vancouver Coastal Health, are committed to taking steps to fully engage with stakeholders and community ahead of any new site opening. Vancouver Coastal Health will not proceed with the overdose-prevention site at 900 Helmcken St. at this time, and there is currently no planned date for opening. “The Province is committed to working collaboratively with the City of Vancouver, local businesses and community partners to ensure people can access life-saving services, while addressing concerns raised by the community and supporting safe, healthy neighbourhoods for everyone. The mobile overdose-prevention site will continue to operate to provide a limited number of services in the area.”
There has been some misinformation and speculation regarding my comments about using Al, so 1 want to be absolutely clear about the facts. Any Al agents or tools I have experimented with were used strictly in a personal capacity. They were never used on City of Vancouver hardware, never connected to City networks, never used for City business, and never provided access to any City information or data. They were also not used on City premises, including at City Hall. These tools all reside on my personal dedicated computer that has never been connected to City systems or brought into City Hall. Like many people, I have experimented with and explored Al technology for personal productivity and learning. This includes scanning the news, tracking global and financial events, following thought leaders, dietary planning, exercise tracking, and other personal examples like those. So, to be clear, at no point were these tools used to make City decisions, access confidential information, or conduct municipal business. As Mayor, I take privacy, security, and public trust very seriously. Vancouver residents should know there is a clear separation between my own personal experimentation with emerging technology and the work of the City. It's clear that those spreading misinformation and speculation could discourage investment in Vancouver's growing technology sector. Vancouver is home to a vibrant innovation economy, and our local companies are helping lead the world in Al and data centre development. We should be supporting that growth, not undermining it. I encourage everyone to stay curious about how the world is changing and to keep learning new skills or exploring new interests. For me, exploring Al has been one of those interests.
The strike vote, which took place May 8 – 11, follows six months of bargaining in which nurses brought forward many solutions to address the quality of patient care British Columbians receive, only to see the majority of those proposals rejected by the Health Employers Association of BC. From crushing workloads to unsafe staffing levels, workplace violence and occupational health and safety concerns, the bargaining committee has been focusing on resolving systemic risks which undermine nurses’ ability to provide the care they are qualified to provide. The NBA provincial bargaining committee declared impasse April 20 after formal negotiations broke down. “Nurses do not want to be in this position,” says Gear. “Yet they are prepared to fight for the future of nursing and for a health-care system that is safe, sustainable and able to retain the nurses that patients rely on.” While work continues towards full implementation of minimum nurse-to-patient ratios, progress remains challenged by the thousands of nursing vacancies that exist across the province. “Nurses need a contract that respects the critical role they play in keeping this health-care system running,” Gear says. “This is about securing the best possible contract that will retain and recruit the nurses the system needs now and in the future. Now is not the time to take away from nurses.”
PROVINCE OF BRITISH COLUMBIA Ministerial Order No. ORDER OF THE MINISTER OF HEALTH Emergency Health Services Act I, Terry Lake, Minister of Health, as per my authority under section 5.2 of the Emergency Health Services Act and section 7.1 of the Health Authorities Act, order British Columbia Emergency Health Services and the regional health boards to provide, on the advice of the provincial health officer, during the public health emergency declared under the Public Health Act on April 14, 2016, overdose prevention services for the purpose of monitoring persons who are at risk of overdose, and providing rapid intervention as and when necessary, as ancillary health services, in any place there is a need for these services, as determined by the level of overdose related morbidity and mortality. Signed by Minister of Health Terry Lake on Dec. 9, 2016
Vancouver Whitecaps FC Statement: We are aware of today's reporting. The club has faced well-documented structural challenges around stadium economics, venue access, and revenue limitations that have made it difficult to attract buyers committed to keeping the team in Vancouver. Over the past 16 months, we have had serious conversations with more than 100 parties, and to date, no viable offer has emerged that would keep the club here. It remains the strong preference of this ownership group to find a solution in Vancouver. If there is a local ownership group with the vision and resources to chart a path forward, we urge them to come forward.
A sample capsule that is used to hold diacetylmorphine is shown with its packaging at a Vancouver facility that produces legal heroin as a response to the toxic drug supply. Taken by Paige Taylor White for the Globe and Mail