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Good morning.

We’re covering clashes between Britain’s candidates for prime minister, a harrowing trial in France and a crackdown on drunken scooter-driving in Denmark.

Johnson and Hunt spar over Trump and Brexit

In their first head-to-head debate, the two contenders to lead the Conservative Party — and thus succeed Theresa May as prime minister — pushed each other on a firm Brexit deadline and mitigating the effects of a no-deal Brexit. They also clashed over President Trump’s visceral attack on the British ambassador to the U.S.

Jeremy Hunt, the foreign secretary, challenged Boris Johnson, his predecessor, to say he would resign as prime minister if he did not extract Britain from the E.U. on Oct. 31, as he has promised. Mr. Johnson dodged, but he also went on the attack, saying he admired Mr. Hunt’s ability “to change his mind” — referring to his former opposition to Britain’s withdrawal from the bloc.

Trump factor: Mr. Trump has laid into the British ambassador, Kim Darroch, calling him “wacky” and “a very stupid guy,” over leaked internal documents in which Mr. Darroch derided the White House.

Mr. Hunt described Mr. Trump’s comments as “unacceptable,” while Mr. Johnson offered only mild criticism and said he had good relations with the White House.

Markets: The pound sterling neared a two-year low on Tuesday as the diplomatic spat raised questions about what kind of support a post-Brexit Britain can expect from the Trump administration.

‘Moral harassment’ at France Télécom

A decade ago, top executives at France Télécom wanted to shrink the company by thousands of workers. But they couldn’t fire most of them. The workers were state employees and therefore guaranteed jobs for life.

So the executives resolved to make life so unbearable that the workers would leave, prosecutors say. Instead, at least 35 employees killed themselves, feeling trapped, betrayed and despairing of ever finding new work in France’s immobile labor market.

The former executives are now on trial on charges of “moral harassment.” If convicted, they face a year in jail and a $16,800 fine.

Big picture: The trial, which ends on Friday, has riveted a country where relations between labor and management are often hostile. It may help answer a question that haunts the French as they fitfully modernize their economy: How far can a company go to streamline, shed debt and make money?

Lessons from Greece’s populist experiment

Alexis Tsipras ceded the office of prime minister to Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the center-right New Democracy leader, marking the end of Greece’s flirtation with radical left-wing populist politics. The Tsipras experiment may hold important lessons for Europe and its new ranks of anti-establishment populists.

Reality: While many populists mock the E.U. and its rules, once they are in power they often heed warnings and avoid going to extremes. The combination of E.U. rules and capital markets often leaves governments with no choice but to reform and avoid radical financial policy.

Quotable: “Populists are not always as scary in office as they may appear,” said Mark Leonard, the director of the European Council on Foreign Relations.

Challenges ahead: Despite promises to Brussels and the International Monetary Fund, Mr. Tsipras did little to confront and restructure Greece’s large civil service and its clientelist economy. This leaves Mr. Mitsotakis with a lot of work to do.

If you have eight minutes, this is worth it

Macron’s efforts to push the jobless back to work

President Emmanuel Macron’s next chapter in altering the French economy involves tightening jobless benefits to get the unemployed back to work faster.

But the plans are already facing a public outcry. Labor unions held demonstrations, and economists say the overhaul will only tweak the current system, not amounting to much tangible change.

Here’s what else is happening

Epstein case: Alexander Acosta, the labor secretary, is facing calls to resign and rising pressure from inside the Trump administration for his previous role in brokering a lenient plea deal for the New York financier Jeffrey Epstein, who was accused of sex crimes a decade ago — and again this week.

Iran: European members of the 2015 nuclear agreement expressed “deep concern that Iran is pursuing activities inconsistent with its commitments” under the accord, signaling increased alarm in what was the strongest response yet to the country’s violation of two parts of the agreement in recent days.

Huawei: The Trump administration will allow some companies to sell to Huawei, weeks after placing the Chinese telecommunications company on a blacklist for security reasons.

Twitter: The social media giant unveiled its first official guidelines on what constitutes “dehumanizing” speech, but the scope of the rules is narrower than the company had initially considered.

Scooting under the influence: Over the weekend, Copenhagen’s police arrested 28 drunken drivers who were operating battery-powered electric scooters, as part of Denmark’s push to keep intoxicated drivers off the road.

Snapshot: Above, the fishing village of Galaxidi on the Corinthian Gulf. In Greece, our writer retraced the path that ancient visitors took to get to the Oracle of Delphi.

‘Love Island’: The raunchy, bizarre British reality TV dating show with millions of viewers has arrived in America. We have a primer for those who have managed to avoid it so far.

Wimbledon: Serena Williams beat fellow American Alison Riske for a spot in the semifinals, putting her within reach of the Grand Slam title that has eluded her since the birth of her daughter in 2017.

What we’re reading: This first-person essay in Harper’s Bazaar by Serena Williams about her heated U.S. Open match last year, accompanied by unretouched photos. Alisha Haridasani Gupta, on the briefings team, says, “It’s the tennis star at her most raw, unfiltered self.”

Now, a break from the news

Cook: They’re s’mores without the campfire, but don’t let that deter you from these blondies.

Listen: The music video for Miley Cyrus’s song “Mother’s Daughter” offers assorted fetish wear, a determinedly inclusive cast of extras and slogans hyperlinked to a feminist protest group. Suddenly it’s an anthem to share.

Watch: The writer and director Ari Aster narrates a scene from his new film, “Midsommar,” featuring Florence Pugh and some powerful mushroom tea.

Smarter Living: If you routinely struggle to get every detail right, someone may have tossed the often-quoted platitude “Perfect is the enemy of good” at you. Two strategies can help you just get it done. First, knock the task off in achievable, satisfying micro-steps. Second, focus on the process rather than the outcome so you can enjoy the progress you’re making. And try a new saying: “Done is better than perfect.”

And happiness isn’t something that just happens to you. Our guide can help you make small changes in your behavior, surroundings and relationships for a happier life.

And now for the Back Story on …

Modern manners

For a psychoactive substance that’s still nominally illegal in most of the world, cannabis has never been more popular in the U.S. — and that means it’s time to mind our manners beyond “don’t bogart that joint.”

Lizzie Post, the great-great-granddaughter of the American etiquette doyenne Emily Post, delves into the finer points with a new book called “Higher Etiquette,” which Dwight Garner, a Times book critic, calls “helpful and inquisitive.”

Among her recommendations: Thoughtful hosts should provide finger bowls so a guest can dampen a joint that’s burning unevenly, and should place vape pens “to the right of the setting or across the top of the setting either between the place card and dessertware or behind the place card.”

As for bogarting — that’s wastefully hanging on to a joint without smoking it — Ms. Post notes that the term is “derived from the way Humphrey Bogart would just let a cigarette hang out of his mouth, not seeming to actually smoke it.”

That’s it for this briefing. See you next time.

— Melina

Thank you
To Mark Josephson and Eleanor Stanford for the break from the news. Adam Pasick, on the briefings team, wrote today’s Back Story. You can reach the team at [email protected].

P.S.
• We’re listening to “The Daily.” Our latest episode is on Jeffrey Epstein.
• Here’s today’s Mini Crossword puzzle, and a clue: Site of a recent Trump/Kim meeting, for short (3 letters). You can find all our puzzles here.
• The travel editor for The New York Times, Amy Virshup, announced that her desk would buy carbon offsets for airplane travel by staff members on assignment, including our 52 Places Traveler.

Melina Delkic writes the Europe edition of the Morning Briefing. @MelinaDelkic

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