PRESS DIGEST - Canada - Sept 15

Sept 15 (Reuters) - The following are top stories from selected Canadian newspapers. Reuters has not verified these stories and does not vouch for their accuracy.

THE GLOBE AND MAIL:

- Prime Minister Stephen Harper is refusing to make any backroom deals with the NDP to keep his minority government in power, setting the stage for a public dance between the two parties as Parliament heads into a confidence vote on Friday.

- Osama bin Laden accused President Barack Obama Monday of being too weak to quit waging the wars started by his predecessor, George W. Bush, warning that the West's U.S.-led effort to crush the Taliban in Afghanistan is doomed.

- Developing a campaign to reduce the population's dangerously high sodium consumption is one of the most pressing public health matters facing Canada, a new article published Monday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal said.

Report on Business Section:

- The co-chief executive of Magna International Inc (MGA.TO) said Tuesday that he does not believe the European Union will block his company's acquisition of a majority stake in Opel.

- RCMP arrested an Alberta man and laid charges against another on allegations that both were involved in a Ponzi scheme that police say raised at least $100-million - and perhaps as much as $400-million - from thousands of investors.

- Syncrude Canada Ltd has entered not guilty pleas in connection with environmental charges stemming from the deaths of 1,603 ducks last year in one of the company's toxic oil sands tailings ponds in northern Alberta.

NATIONAL POST

- Actor Patrick Swayze, whose turn as a smoldering dance instructor in Dirty Dancing made him one of the iconic film stars of the 1980s, died on Monday after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. He was 57.

- Ontario's Liberal government kicked off a new legislative session on Monday by announcing new spending rules for public-sector employees.

Financial Post section:

- After simmering over the summer, the issue of pension reform is heating up again in Ottawa. This week, several groups have made the trek to Parliament Hill to urge improvements to Canada's pension system, including changes to the bankruptcy act and the creation of a new supplemental pension fund.

- Canada's Finance Minister Jim Flaherty said a "substantial" deficit is easing the effects of recession, adding he wants all the stimulus money spent to ensure recovery.