Andy Murray was among the people expressing their shock at Nigel Farage’s decision to travel to Belgrade to support Novak Djokovic’s family amid a border dispute.
The former UKIPer, who has previously been full of praise for the Australian immigration system, was in Serbia as it was announced that the tennis star would be allowed to stay in the country to compete in the Open tournament.
Judge Anthony Kelly quashed the visa cancellation and ordered the Australian Government to pay legal costs and release Djokovic from detention within half an hour.
But Government counsel Christopher Tran notified the court that the Minister for Immigration, Alex Hawke – not the minister who made the original visa cancellation – will now consider whether to exercise a personal power of cancellation of Djokovic’s visa.
Earlier in the day Djokovic was removed from detention to be with his lawyers during the hearing, and Judge Anthony Kelly expressed agitation over the rejection of Djokovic’s medical exemption.
Djokovic’s lawyers presented their arguments to the court, but government lawyer Mr Tran only spoke for half an hour before a lengthy adjournment.
During that break the two parties agreed on the minutes of Judge Kelly’s order.
The minutes note Djokovic was not given adequate time to respond to the notification to cancel his visa.
Earlier, the court published an order made yesterday that Djokovic be taken from the Park Hotel – where he had been held since Thursday – and brought to “a premises as specified by the applicant’s solicitors” during the hearing.
The hearing was delayed by technical issues with the court’s video link, but Djokovic’s lawyers argued their case to Judge Kelly, who asked the court “What more could this man have done?” and said he was “agitated” about the issue of Djokovic’s medical exemption.
“Here, a professor and an eminently qualified physician have produced and provided to the applicant a medical exemption,” Judge Kelly said.
“Further to that, that medical exemption and the basis on which it was given was separately given by a further independent expert specialist panel established by the Victorian state government and that document was in the hands of the delegate.”
Djokovic’s lawyer, Nicholas Wood, has argued the notice of intention to cancel his visa was defective because it was made on “a confusing blend of two grounds”.
He also argued that Djokovic was treated at the airport as if access to lawyers “couldn’t possibly” be of assistance in the matter and was not given a reasonable chance to respond to the notice.
But it was the reaction of former Brexit Party leader Nigel Farage that got most people talking on social media.
Here’s what people had to say:
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