Morning Update: Scheer resigns as it’s revealed party donors paid for school tuition

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These are the top stories:

Andrew Scheer resigns as it’s revealed Conservative donors paid for his children’s private-school tuition

Mr. Scheer announced his resignation as Conservative Party leader after a disappointing election loss, but will stay on until a replacement is chosen.

The announcement also came shortly after revelations he was using party money to pay for his children’s private-school tuition.

Mr. Scheer revealed his decision 24 hours after The Globe and Mail contacted the party and his office seeking confirmation that the Conservative Fund is paying tuition fees for four of his five children to attend private Catholic schools.

• Who will replace Andrew Scheer? Conservative leadership race launches with big names staying mum, others bowing out
• Opinion (Andrew Coyne): Scheer’s departure alone won’t fix the Conservative Party’s long-standing problems
• Opinion (Campbell Clark): Scheer’s postelection performance ensured his run as leader was beyond salvaging

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Boris Johnson’s Conservatives win majority in U.K. election, clearing the way for Britain to leave the EU

With nearly all of the results counted, the Conservatives have won 364 seats in the 650-seat Parliament, a majority of 78 seats, which is far higher than most opinion polls had indicated. The Labour Party is expected to suffer its worst showing in more than 70 years, dropping 59 seats and finishing with 203.

The win marks a stunning turnaround for the Conservatives and a personal triumph for Boris Johnson who ran a nearly flawless campaign, sticking to his mantra to “get Brexit done” and staying clear of any missteps.

He also capitalized on the lack of clarity in Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn’s position on Brexit, which confused many voters.

Hamilton police chief backs calls for inquest into death of First Nation’s teenager

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Chief Eric Girt wrote to the Ontario Coroner’s Office to confirm his support for the inquest that has been requested by the grandmother of Devon Freeman, as well as the Chippewas of Georgina Island First Nation.

Lawyers for Mr. Freeman’s First Nation say he was last seen alive on Oct. 6, 2017. More than seven months later, they say, his body was found hanging from a tree, exposed to the elements, no more that 35 metres from the back door of his group home. Hamilton police have been subject to criticism since the discovery of Mr. Freeman’s body.

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ALSO ON OUR RADAR

Foreign Affairs Minister opens door to possible compensation for Kovrig, Spavor as they remain detained in China: Other Canadians who were jailed abroad because of action or inaction by Ottawa, including Omar Khadr, have been awarded millions of dollars for abuses they suffered while detained.

House judiciary committee moves steadily toward Trump impeachment vote: The committee, made up of some of the most strident Democrats and Republicans in Congress, clashed for hours in pointed and at times emotional debate, drawing on history and the Constitution to argue over the two charges for impeachment.

U.S. reaches ‘deal in principle’ with China on trade: U.S. negotiators offered to cut existing tariffs on Chinese goods by as much as 50 per cent and suspend new tariffs that were scheduled to go into effect on Sunday, two people familiar with the negotiations said.

Public Health Agency of Canada says salmonella outbreak in six provinces linked to contact with snakes, rodents: Reptiles and rodents can carry salmonella even if they seem clean and healthy, and findings have highlighted the important role pet owners play in preventing new illnesses.

Pete Buttigieg’s campaign denies his involvement in bread price-fixing scheme during work at Loblaw: The release of Buttigieg’s list of clients while at consultancy McKinsey & Company included a six-month stint in 2008 analyzing grocery prices for Loblaw Cos. Ltd. at its headquarters in a Toronto suburb.

MORNING MARKETS

World shares rose on Friday, as the prospect of a China-U.S. trade deal and an election victory for Britain’s Brexit-backing Conservative Party cleared two of the darkest clouds on the global investment horizon. Europe’s pan-regional STOXX 600 share market jumped 1.5 per cent higher on the twin boosts. In Asia, Japan’s Nikkei climbed 2.5 per cent to a 14-month top. New York futures were up. The Canadian dollar was just shy of 76 US cents.

WHAT EVERYONE’S TALKING ABOUT

Aung San Suu Kyi’s dark turn was right in front of us all along

Doug Saunders: “It may look like a betrayal, but her political principles have been consistent from the beginning.” Saunders, The Globe and Mail’s international-affairs columnist, is currently a Richard von Weizsaecker Fellow of the Robert Bosch Academy in Berlin.

Sorry, Jason Kenney, education is always political

Brianna Sharpe: “To imply that the curriculum is “anti-oil-and-gas” and “anti-Albertan” risks removing critical thought itself from our classrooms – and from our citizens.” Sharpe is an Alberta-based educator and freelance writer in Cochrane.

The war in Afghanistan was doomed from the start. What should have happened instead?

Chris Alexander: “The reality was that our mandates in Afghanistan – as UN, as NATO, as national representatives – never extended further. No political leader has been willing to invest in a regional strategy robust enough to end the conflict.” Chris Alexander is a former diplomat and politician

TODAY’S EDITORIAL CARTOON

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LIVING BETTER

What’s new in theatres and streaming this week?

This week’s new releases include Michael Bay’s enthralling 6 Underground and the unnecessary but entertaining Jumanji: The Next Level. The Globe’s highest rated film review this week is tied between Elle-Maija Tailfeathers and Kathleen Hepburn’s new film The Body Remembers When the World Broke Open and The Twentieth Century which is Written and directed by Matthew Rankin.

Three streaming films to keep on your radar this weekend: Marriage Story on Netflix, The Breadwinner on CBC Gem and Long Shot on Amazon Prime Video. Read Barry Hertz’s reviews of the films here.

MOMENT IN TIME

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Saddam Hussein is captured

Dec. 13, 2003: Saddam Hussein went on the run shortly after U.S. forces invaded Baghdad in March, 2003. The U.S. military dubbed him “High Value Target Number One.” The search for him, which would last nine months, was one of the largest manhunts in history. After the capture of Hussein confidante Mohammed Ibrahim Omar al-Muslit, the U.S. military learned that the former Iraqi president was hiding in a compound near Tikrit (he was born just outside the city). That intelligence launched Operation Red Dawn, named after the 1984 Patrick Swayze movie. Some 600 soldiers searched two sites, although they initially failed to find Hussein. As they were readying to leave, a soldier kicked a piece of floorboard, uncovering a “spider hole” where Hussein was hiding with two guns and $750,000 in U.S. currency. It had taken nine months, but Hussein was finally captured. Not a single shot was fired during the operation. Hussein went on trial in October, 2005. He was found guilty of crimes against humanity and was sentenced to death by hanging. After an unsuccessful appeal, he was executed on Dec. 30, 2006. — Dave McGinn

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