British MPs vote for 12 December election
British voters will go to the polls for a third parliamentary election since 2015 (not to mention the referendum of 2016 and EP elections of 2019) after MPs voted by 438 to 20 in favour of a 12 December election. Labour had wanted a 9 December date, and other amendments to allow 16 year olds and EU residents to vote also failed, as The Mirror explains. The Independent says the election won’t break the Brexit deadlock it is supposed to resolve. Politico reckons the election is impossible to predict. The FT has a useful poll tracker. The BBC has a “really simple guide”. The Guardian spoke to voters about the prospect of going to the ballot box again, including a 72-year-old in Bury who said of the Brexit impasse that “in eight months’ time this will have taken as long as the first world war…”
Ukraine testimony sparks smear
Army Lieutenant Colonel Alexander Vindman became the first current White House staff member to testify in the enquiry to impeach president Donald Trump, Reuters reports. The Guardian has five ley takeaways from his 10-hour testimony. But Vindman became a target for a Republican smear campaign, according to CNN. Though, as the National Review points out, several congressional Republicans spoke out in his defence. In a profile of the Lieutenant Colonel, The Washington Post reckons Vindman is a “classic Fox News patriot”.
Lebanese PM to step down
News that Lebanon's prime minister Saad Hariri has said he is resigning was greeted with cries of celebration on Tuesday. But demonstrators will not give up in their protests against the government, says Aljazeera. In an analysis of the crisis, Haaretz reckons that Lebanon is a fractured state in search of leadership.
China warns US on Uighurs criticism
Zhang Jun, China’s ambassador to the United Nations, has issued a warning to the United States that it was not “helpful” for trade talks that it joined 22 other countries in pushing China to stop detaining ethnic Uighurs and other Muslims, Reuters reports.
Boeing knew of 737 Max concerns
In what Reuters calls Boeing’s broadest acceptance of responsibility that it made mistakes over flaws in its design of and subsequent handling of the fatal 737 Max crashes, its CEO testified at a congressional hearing on Tuesday. CBS reports that that the airplane maker’s CEO, Dennis Muilenburg, said that the company had been aware that a test pilot raised questions about the safety of the jet prior to the second crash.
Lockheed gets Pentagon order
The US defence department is set to buy 478 F-35 fighter jets from Lockheed Martin in a deal worth $34 billion, the FT reports. The acquisitions will “form the backbone of the US and allied fifth-generation inventory for the foreseeable future,” says Pentagon official Ellen Lord.
Airbus gets Indian sale
Indian budget airline IndiGo has placed a firm order for 300 planes from the Airbus A320neo range, CNBC reports. The $33 billion deal follows news that US budget carrier Spirit Airlines had placed an order for 100 planes from Airbus, whose stock has risen more than 50% in 2019.
Musk face trial over “pedo” tweet
Tesla boss Elon Musk will go to trial in December over statements he made about Vernon Unsworth, the British diver who helped rescue several boys from a cave in Thailand in 2018, The Guardian reports. Musk called Unsworth “pedo guy” after the diver mocked his plan to use a mini-submarine for the rescue mission.
World Series down to the wire
Baseball’s World Series will be decided in game 7 on Wednesday after the Washington Nationals beat the Houston Astros 7-2 to tie the series at 3-apiece on Tuesday night. USA Today has a report.
Gay police officer wins damages
A Missouri police sergeant who alleged he was passed over for promotion 23 times for being gay has won $19 million in damages. Keith Wildhaber was told to "tone down the gayness" to get the promotion, the BBC reports.
Funeral high after cake mix up
13 people at a funeral dinner experienced nausea and dizziness after eating a hash cake mistakenly served to them at a restaurant in Wiethagen in north-east Germany. The Guardian says that the cake had been baked by the 18-year-old daughter of a restaurant employee for a “different occasion.”
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Duncan Roberts