Your morning Briefing: May government survives no-confidence motion

Your 2-minute digest of today’s top stories and must-reads.

Good morning readers. Theresa May’s government lives to fight another day, and men around the world threaten to boycott Gillette over “toxic masculinity” ad campaign.

A video grab from footage broadcast by the UK Parliament's Parliamentary Recording Unit (PRU) shows Britain's Prime Minister Theresa May reacting as opposition Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn makes a point of order after the result of the vote on the no confidence motion, in the House of Commons in central London on January 16, 2019. - British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday survived a no-confidence vote sparked by the crushing defeat of her Brexit deal just weeks before the UK leaves the European Union. (Photo by HO / PRU / AFP) / RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - MANDATORY CREDIT " AFP PHOTO / PRU " - NO USE FOR ENTERTAINMENT, SATIRICAL, MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS

May fights on

The Conservative government of Theresa May has survived a no confidence vote, 325 to 306 in the House of Commons this morning. Most MPs reverted to voting along party lines after several recent rebellions and yesterday’s government defeat, giving Mrs May a sliver of good news as she now tries to negotiate a way out of the current Brexit gridlock.

Greg Sheridan suggests that in trying to thwart a no-deal Brexit, power has shifted to Tory Remainers.

“I am pleased this House has expressed its confidence in the government tonight, I don’t not take this responsibility lightly ... and yes, to work to deliver on the solemn promise of the people of this country to deliver on the result of the referendum and leave the European Union.’’

Theresa May

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Scene from a new Gillette ad that deals with issues of "toxic masculinity". Picture: YouTube

Gillette threatened

Men around the world are threatening to boycott shaving company Gillette after it launched an advertising campaign that targets toxic masculinity and encourages men to be held “accountable” for their actions. The two-minute video, which intersperses clips of news reports on the #MeToo movement and­ ­images showing sexism in the workplace, has sparked intense debate online.

Bettina Arndt writes that the ad may represent a tipping point where virtue-signalling forces the silent majority against men’s demonisation to find their voice.

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Supplied image of "notable zombies" from popular AMC television series The Walking Dead.

Climate zombies

It is often claimed that 97 per cent of scientists conclude that humans are causing global warming. Is that really true? No, writes Ian Plimer. It is a zombie statistic. In the scientific circles I mix in, there is an overwhelming scepticism about human-induced climate change. Many of my colleagues claim that the mantra of human-induced global warming is the biggest scientific fraud of all time and future generations will pay dearly.

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Matthew Hassan senior economist Westpac Bank for DT business

Confidence ebbs

Consumers are losing confidence in the outlook for both the economy and their own financial positions, putting the government’s forecasts of a return to strong economic growth at risk, while a leading corporate restructuring expert says the collapse in shopping centre traffic is the worst in 20 years.

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Australia's Alex de Minaur celebrates his victory against Switzerland's Henri Laaksonen during their men's singles match on day three of the Australian Open tennis tournament in Melbourne on January 16, 2019. (Photo by Paul Crock / AFP) / -- IMAGE RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE - STRICTLY NO COMMERCIAL USE --

Blockbuster clash

After a typically courageous victory at Melbourne Park last night, Alex de Minaur is determined to do his best to dethrone a king. The teenager spent a significant time in Spain and quickly came to realise just how significant an idol Rafael Nadal, his next opponent, is in his home nation.

Nick Kyrgios. meantime, appears to have burnt his Davis Cup bridges by having a second dig at Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt. Keep up with the on and off-court drama in our live Australian Open blog.

“(Rafa’s) done so much amazing things for the sport. He’s had that many achievements. It’s pretty incredible. It’s going to be fun for me to get out on court and be able to test where I am.”

Alex de Minaur

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Kudelka’s view

Jon Kudleka Leters Cartoon for 17-01-19Version: Letters Cartoon (1280x720 - Aspect ratio preserved, Canvas added)COPYRIGHT: The Australian's artists each have different copyright agreements in place regarding re-use of their work in other publications.Please seek advice from the artists themselves or the Managing Editor of The Australian regarding re-use.