Hi, I very much don't agree with the set of arguments in the #857986 bug report. Npm can be used for a large amount of things, of which may not include downloading and installing the very latest version of a Javascript module. Therefore, the package is still useable for a wide set of functionalities within the scope of Debian and the set of package we have (for example, for rebuilding).
Also, removing such a non-leaf package at this point of the release is a way too late. IMO, a bug should have been opened a long time ago asking for an upgrade of the package. Last, at this point in time, I believe we should discuss the issue with the release team. They may agree, for example, that we upgrade the package to a newer version (this is unlikely, but it is up to them to tell). They may don't agree that we "fix" so many source package to remove the build-dependency. Anyway, the solution should be discuss with them. Therefore, I'm CC-ing the release team. In any case, once Stretch is released, we must make sure such an important package gets better maintenance, and follow upstream closely. Cheers, Thomas Goirand (zigo)
