Defence Minister Bill Blair says he will transfer prosecution of sexual offences in the military to civilian authorities as part of a culture shakeup in the armed forces. [Global]

Just an FYI: I have asked the Conservative Party of Canada three times for its current list of officially nominated candidates. Twice that request was ignored. On the third time, the party spox said it would not be provided. The Liberals have provided such a list. The NDP has said they would but have not yet done so. And the BQ said they don't yet have a full list but will pass on when they do. So, for the CPC, at least, I'm left to trolling social media accounts or relying on the intelligence of those who read this newsletter to see who's running where.
And, so here's another one just posted on the CPC's social accounts: Ned Kuruc, a mortgage professional, seeks a re-match against Liberal incumbent Chad Collins in Hamilton East--Stoney Creek. The Conservatives have never won this riding since its creation in 2004. Voters have returned only Liberals and New Democrat Wayne Marston. For 2025, the riding loses a slice of its western end to Hamilton Centre that has the result of making the riding "more Liberal" on paper at least. Collins won in 2021 by about 8 points but the redistribution of 2021 votes on to the new riding boundaries would have given him a 9 point margin of victory over Kuruc. That said, if an election were held today, this "more Liberal" riding would result in a first-time win here for Kuruc and the Conservatives by about 7 points. - DA

Teresa Durning is a city councillor and a  constituency assistant in the office of North Okanagan-Shuswap MP Mel Arnold. I believe she's at least the third (maybe fourth) to enter the nomination contest for the new southern BC riding to be called Vernon--Lake Country--Monashee. Had VLCM existed in 2021, it would have been an easy CPC win. Transposing votes then on to the new riding's boundaries give the CPC the seat with 44% of the vote and it would almost certainly elect a Conservative if an election were held now. Hence: The intense competition for the CPC nomination. - DA

Hospitals and long-term care homes spent nearly $1 billion last year to fill shifts with nurses and personal support workers from private staffing agencies, according to estimates in a Ministry of Health document released through a freedom-of-information request. [CP]

Real estate experts say that getting a judgment is a lot easier than foreclosing on a major piece of real estate. And pinning a value to Trump’s buildings is a guessing game. [NYT]

Gary Younge: What has happened to Britain? For all its faults, the British ruling class used to take itself seriously—if anything, too seriously. No one would accuse it of doing that now. The deluded act of self-harm otherwise known as Brexit was the most glaring example: for momentary electoral gain and an internal party truce, former prime minister David Cameron asked the country a question to which he did not want to know the answer and then resigned when they got it “wrong.” A nation that insisted on an aggressive, isolating version of its own sovereignty has spent the past eight years struggling to figure out what to do with it. But Brexit also acted as a sifting mechanism, elevating the least serious to the top. Fair eye-opener of an essay for those, particularly progressives, who may not have paid much attention recently to UK politics. [NY Review of Books]

Resources from the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting data journalism conference collected and posted by Sharon Machlis. Great resource for journalists and j-educators.  - DA [Machlis.com]