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politics briefing newsletter

Hello,

With much of Ottawa still recovering from last week’s election, let’s cast our gaze for a moment across the pond.

The European Union has agreed to give Britain a little more time to sort out its Brexit.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had taken over leadership of the Conservative Party earlier this year in part by pledging to guide Britain out of the EU by Oct. 31 (Thursday), “do or die.”

Instead, things got a bit more complicated. This fall, Parliament was prorogued then un-prorogued, and Mr. Johnson worked out a deal that other lawmakers could live with, but not fast enough to meet his Oct. 31 deadline.

The EU said Monday that Britain could have up to Jan. 31, 2020, to ratify the deal with Mr. Johnson.

Mr. Johnson is also calling for a snap election in December in amongst all this. Two-thirds of the House of Commons must agree to his request for it to go through. MPs vote later today.

This is the daily Politics Briefing newsletter, written by Chris Hannay. It is available exclusively to our digital subscribers. If you’re reading this on the web, subscribers can sign up for the Politics newsletter and more than 20 others on our newsletter signup page. Have any feedback? Let us know what you think.

TODAY’S HEADLINES

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on the weekend that Islamic State leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi died during a U.S. Special Forces raid in Syria. “Last night, the United States brought the world’s No. 1 terrorist leader to justice,” Mr. Trump said on Sunday. The President recently ordered a withdrawal of U.S. troops in the country, which has led to renewed chaos in the region as Turkish forces move in. Congressional Republicans and Democrats have criticized the withdrawal as leaving Kurdish allies high and dry.

Back in Canada, the Ontario legislature resumes sitting today after a long break. Premier Doug Ford’s Progressive Conservative government hopes the pause was a chance to reset what was, at times, a difficult year, that saw the province get in public conflicts with a number of stakeholders, including Toronto city council and autism advocates. While the PCs are promising more civility in the chamber, there may still be more clashes to come outside of it: negotiations continue between the provincial government and teachers’ unions, with a possible strike vote coming this week.

Yukon is debating prison legislation that would make it the jurisdiction with the tightest limits on solitary confinement in the country.

A former Conservative MP who lost another re-election bid last week says Andrew Scheer should not stay on as party leader. Terence Young said he thought Mr. Scheer "can’t connect with voters.”

Re-elected Liberal MP Jim Carr, the International Trade minister (at least until a new cabinet is sworn until next month) from Winnipeg, says he was diagnosed with a type of blood cancer last week. He says he will stay as an MP while he receives treatment.

Calgary Mayor Naheed Nenshi says he is happy to work with the federal government to understand the concerns of Albertans, but speculation that he might be appointed to cabinet is “silly.”

Envoys to Canada from the European Union and Germany say that, without wading into the partisanship of the election, they are pleased with what the result means for the “continuity” of international climate change efforts.

And residents of the New Brunswick isle of Campobello Island are getting fed up with Americans opening their mail. Because of the placement of the island, most people and goods flow across the bridge that connects the island with Maine. Residents say border authorities are intercepting more and more packages in a search for cannabis.

John Ibbitson (The Globe and Mail) on Trudeau’s options to win over the Prairies: “The best way for this government to calm Western anger would be to move aggressively on a Western agenda. That would include the rapid completion of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, despite the protests of environmentalists and some Indigenous communities.”

Kelly Cryderman (The Globe and Mail) on Alberta’s provincial budget: “Premier Jason Kenney’s first budget is a jarring return to an era of program spending reductions, even if the budget cuts in Alberta will not be nearly as deep as a quarter century ago – during the austere early Klein years.”

Dan Leger (Halifax Chronicle Herald) on Kenney’s fight with Ottawa: “In some ways, the real post-election split is as much between rural and urban Canada as between East and West. The Conservatives have become the small town and country party, resentful of city folks, their values and the Liberals they elect.”

Paul Wells (Maclean’s) on whether Andrew Scheer should stay on as Conservative leader: “It’s often a good idea to let a leader stick around after a first disappointing campaign. National campaigns are hard. A first campaign is a good chance to make your mistakes. That’s why Stephen Harper lost on his first attempt, as did Dalton McGuinty and Jean Charest in the two largest provinces. Losing was part of what helped them learn how to win.”

André Pratte (The Globe and Mail) on why he quit the Senate: “For my part, however, I was resolute in my decision to be completely independent of the political parties, meaning both the Liberal government and the Conservative opposition. More often than not, I found myself stuck between the two camps, unable to present my case to either side, since reason doesn’t count for much when partisan interests are at stake.”

Sylvia Stead (Public editor, The Globe and Mail) on why The Globe didn’t endorse anyone in this election: “Editorials and endorsements are separate from the news operation. Every day, the editorial board studies the issues behind the news and says what it believes governments or society should do: whether on gun control or #MeToo or foreign policy. The editor-in-chief can direct or sign off on these opinions. Endorsements are part of newspaper history, but in my view, it’s time to amend that.”

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