LOCAL
Toronto-area MPP Peter Shurman has been dismissed as Progressive Conservative finance critic after it was revealed he billed taxpayers for his second home. PC leader Tim Hudak removed him from his post Sunday. [Globe and Mail]
Mayor Ford called the decision to fill Doug Holyday’s vacant seat in Ward 3 “absolutely insane.” In describing the process to fill the seat, he said, “this whole process stinks. I don’t like it, I don’t feel comfortable with it.” [CBC]
Julia Luis-Dreyfus said audiences will “freak out” over the late James Gandolfini’s performance in Enough Said, premiering at TIFF. Gandolfini, who died on June 19 at age 51, plays a divorcée romancing Louis Dreyfus’ character. [National Post]
NATIONAL
Pauline Marois says she didn’t mean any offence with comments she made about multiculturalism in England earlier this week. She said multiculturalism has led to “people beating each other up and setting off bombs,” because Britain has no clear sense of identity. [CBC]
Merit pay and national licensing standards for public school teachers would curb the influence of “entrenched and powerful interest groups” and promote better teaching, says a new study. Rodney Clifton’s study says more incentives and accountability are needed in how teachers are certified, hired and financially rewarded. [National Post]
Several dozen people gathered at the Russian Consulate in Montreal to defiantly lock lips, as part of a world-wide protest against Russia’s anti-gay laws. Organizers said over 50 cities participated in the event, coined “To Russia, With Love.” [Globe and Mail]
INTERNATIONAL
The U.S. government insists it has concrete evidence to connects Bashar al-Assad’s government to the alleged attack that killed hundreds of people, yet they haven’t shown it to the public. The public has yet to see satellite imagery or a transcript of military communications linking Assad to the attack. [National Post]
Egyptian activists fear crackdown on Islamists will widen to other dissidents. “There is a crackdown on anyone who opposes military rule,” said Wael Abbas, a well-known journalist and rights activist. [The Guardian]
Putin’s insider Sergei Sobyanin barely won the first mayoral race for Moscow in a decade. Aleksei Navalny, the charismatic lawyer and blogger who has emerged as a fierce opponent of Putin, said he won 35% of the vote, compared to 45% for Mr. Sobyanin, depriving him of an outright victory, saying there will be a “second round” in these elections. [New York Times]
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