Leisure

• [New] Australia and New Zealand provide Working Holiday visas for Canadian and British youths, which are 12 months in Australia (that could be increased to 24 or 36 months), while British and Canadian youths can apply to live and work in New Zealand for up to 23 months.
• [New] Some 9,000 people were expected to receive their shots there over three days as the French government tries to speed up vaccinations amid a fresh outbreak of infections.
• [New] Virtual reality goggles could one day become a common sight in aircraft cabins, as passengers immerse themselves in a world of live entertainment content.
• [New] New York's law is a bit more lenient, allowing up to three ounces of cannabis for recreational use and will also eventually allow individuals to own six marijuana plants.
• [New] While leisure travel within the United States may be recovering steadily, airlines expect it will still take until 2023 or 2024 for passenger volumes to return to 2019 levels.
• [New] When senior-phase students in Scotland return to school for full-time education after their Easter holiday, it will not be to help rebuild relationships.
• [New] While marijuana (psychoactive cannabis is still an illegal controlled substance under the federal law, 36 states have legalized) it for medical use and 15 states and Washington, DC have legalized recreational cannabis, with more states expected to follow soon, including New York.
• [New] As the stamp duty holiday disproportionately boosted more expensive houses and housing markets, we expect the historically unusual situation of a housing market downturn more substantial in London and the South East than in most other parts of the UK - not a levelling up so much as a dressing down.
• [New] Applications of AI have expanded to real estate, entertainment and gaming in recent years, and are expected to develop further in the coming years.
• [New] In the second quarter, BMW Korea will be launching high-performance sports models - the new M3 Competition and new M4 Coupe Competition - and will also add the M135i, which would be the most performance-oriented model among the new 1 Series lineup.
• [New] Consumers Have Hope for Getting Back to Normal: Once COVID restrictions are lifted, Americans are looking forward to taking a vacation, dining out at restaurants, going to in-person religious services, and visiting a hair salon.
• [New] In 2021, the subdued March new car market will generate less part-exchanges and fleet returns than normal, meaning less supply, and demand will increase as showrooms open up straight after the Easter weekend in Scotland and a week later in England.
• [New] In a warmer future, many fish will need fish to take a summer vacation and move to cold places to survive the hottest months of the year.
• [New] Though plenty of states with medical and recreational programs could benefit from California's potential cannabis surplus, fear of criminal prosecution from the Feds keeps states and businesses from working together for mutual gain.
• [New] Public health experts in the U.S. are taking every opportunity to warn that relaxing social distancing and other preventive measures could easily lead to another surge.
• Belgium has tightened restrictions - all schools and universities will be closed from Monday, effectively extending the Easter holiday to three weeks.
• A surge in coronavirus cases across Europe threatens a new wave in Britain and makes holidays abroad increasingly unlikely, government sources fear.
• Any vaccine delays in the UK could actually have a positive effect [on UK GDP] if it means that foreign holidays are delayed longer.
• The Canadian federal government introduced a bill at the end of last year which could pave the way for legalisation of single-event sports betting, with licences for online operators.

Last updated: 07 April 2021