New law to get Brexit done in 2020
Freshly elected British prime minister Boris Johnson has set out plans to amend the EU withdrawal agreement bill to ensure that the UK will not extend the transition period beyond the end of 2020. The Guardian says Ireland’s deputy prime minister has described the decision as “strange” and that the UK did not prosper when false deadlines were drawn. The Daily Mail reports that Brexit minister Michael Gove has insisted that “we are going to make sure we get this deal done in time.” But the BBC says that shadow Brexit secretary Sir Keir Starmer believes the legal move is “reckless and irresponsible”. Reuters cites Sabine Weyand, director-general of the EU’s trade department, telling a European Policy Centre think tank seminar that “we have to look at those issues where failing to reach an agreement by 2020 would lead to another cliff-edge situation.” CNBC reports that the pound fell more than 1% on the back of the news.
Trump accuses Dems of “attempted coup”
US president Donald Trump has written a 6-page letter to House speaker Nancy Pelosi, who was on her way back from Luxembourg, on the eve of a vote that will likely see him impeached. Reuters reports that the letter accuses Democrats of pursuing an “illegal, partisan attempted coup” and declaring war on American democracy. CNN has broken down the 30 most “blistering” lines of the letter, while The Guardian has 5 highlights. PolitiFact has a fact-check of the letter. Jennifer Rubin in The Washington Post called the letter “rambling, unhinged and lie-filled” as well as “bizarre and frightening”. Meanwhile, with Trump still favourite to win a second-term in 2020, CNBC looks at what that could mean for Wall Street.
Poland’s supreme court says EU membership under threat
The BBC reports that Poland’s supreme court has delivered a scathing judgement on the government’s attempts to reform the country’s judiciary. The court says the reform, which is due for a vote on Thursday, will “in all likelihood lead to an intervention by EU institutions regarding an infringement of EU treaties, and in the longer run [will lead to] the need to leave the European Union.”
Tech exports ban not as wide as feared
In an exclusive, Reuters reports that the Trump administration’s rules on banning sensitive technology exports to China and other countries will be “narrowly tailored to address specific national security issues.” US companies had feared a wider ban that would hit a range of exports. But according to documents seen by Reuters, the Commerce Department will apply five rules covering products like quantum computing and 3-D printing technologies, and they could even be submitted to international bodies for approval.
Musharraf gets death sentence in absentia
Following a six-year legal case, a special court on Tuesday sentenced former president of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf to death for high treason. Musharraf, now 76, has been living in self-imposed exile in Dubai and was not present at the verdict in Islamabad, CNN reports. NPR says Pakistan's military has criticised the sentence, claiming it has caused a “lot of pain and anguish” in army ranks. Al Jazeera has a profile of Musharraf.
Unity government promise for South Sudan
South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and former rebel leader Riek Machar have agreed to form a transitional unity government by February, Al Jazeera reports. The move came just a day after the US imposed sanctions on two South Sudanese officials accused of undermining peace efforts, The Washington Post reports.
Anti-racism monkey “completely inappropriate”
A campaign launched by Italy’s Serie A to combat racism in football has come under fire for featuring monkeys as its main visual, the BBC reports. Top clubs including AC Milan and AS Roma came out against the campaign, and leading anti-racism organisations like Fare and Kick It Out said the campaign left them speechless and was “completely inappropriate”.
Carey gets Christmas wish
Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want For Christmas’, which The Guardian calls “perhaps the most cherished, euphoric and vocally impressive Christmas song of all time”, has reached no.1 in the US singles charts, some 25 years after it was released. It is Carey’s 19th US no.1.
Women on the oche
Fallon Sherrock become the first woman to beat a man at the Professional Darts Corporation world championship on Tuesday when she won her match against Ted Evetts 3-2 at Alexandra Palace, scoring six 180s in the process, The Guardian reports.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Duncan Roberts