BP vows to clean up Gulf of Mexico oil slick

Oil giant BP has acknowledged it is "absolutely responsible" for cleaning up a huge oil spill after an explosion at one of its wells off the US coast.

But BP boss Tony Hayward said the firm was not to blame for the accident which sank the Deepwater Horizon rig on 22 April, causing the slick.

He said the equipment that failed belonged to drilling firm Transocean.

Both companies are expecting lawsuits over the slick, which threatens to cause major ecological damage.

US President Barack Obama has described the oil leak as a "potentially unprecedented" environmental disaster.

"BP is responsible for this leak. BP will be paying the bill," he said.

Slick 'heading to Florida'

The US government has been putting pressure on BP to act quickly.

In a BBC interview, Mr Hayward dismissed talk of a rift between BP and US officials.

Hundreds of people have been drafted in to help clean up the oil

"Despite some of the rhetoric we have established an incredible co-operative relationship with the federal authorities," he said.

"It's clear that we're working very well together. In terms of the responsibility, I want to be clear, this was not our accident but it is our responsibility to deal with the leak and clean up the oil."

Thousands of barrels of oil have been leaking into the Gulf of Mexico every day since the rig sank.

Some oil has washed ashore, but officials say the bulk of the slick remains a few miles from the Louisiana coastline.

The oil is already having a devastating effect on the area's fishing industry, and officials fear much wider environmental damage if the full slick hits land.

Forecasters said south-westerly winds on Monday were pushing the slick towards Florida.

Falling shares

Mr Hayward said BP was making a three-pronged effort to stop the leak:

• Undersea robots are working on the safety valve which failed, allowing the oil to escape
• A containment vessel is being sent to the site and would, in effect, suck up the escaped oil
• BP is drilling a new well to help relieve the pressure and stem the flow from the rupture

Experts warn that the cost of clearing up the spill could run into billions of dollars.

BP has said it will honour legitimate claims for compensation from people affected.

The firm's shares continued to fall on Monday, after previous trading had seen about $20bn wiped from its market value since the accident.

UK markets were closed on Monday, but BP's Frankfurt-listed shares opened 8% lower before clawing back some of the losses.

Analysts say the costs associated with the slick are uncertain, meaning that the share price was likely to remain volatile while the leak continues.

In California, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger withdrew his support for a plan to expand oil exploration off the state's coast.

He said seeing TV images of the spill in the Gulf had changed his mind about the safety of offshore oil platforms in the Pacific Ocean.

He had supported more drilling as a way to ease the state's budget deficit.

What are the different government parties in the USA?

In the USA there are two main parties:

Democrat

Republican

There are many other "3rd" party groups, with the most known being the Libertarian party and the Green party. Although these groups have never won a national election, they can play an important role in taking votes away from one on the major parties. Ross Perot's 3rd party campain in 1992 likely cost George H. W. Bush a re-election victory over Bill Clinton. Ralph Nader (Green Party) probably cost Al Gore the Election in 2001.

Although this is an over simplification and are not true for all members of the party, the basic beliefs are as follows.

Democrat:

Democrats hold a liberal or progressive philosophy towards social issues such as gay marriage (support) and abortion (support). They also claim to support the poor and middle class (i.g. support increase in the minimum wage, labor unions, social programs).

Fically speaking, they believe that the Federal government should take an active take steps to better society as a whole. They believe that the main role of the Federal government is to ensure national welfare. This means increasing taxes, particularly on the wealthy and on businesses who can afford it and using the revenue to fund social programs to help the poor. They are criticized as being the party of big government and government spending. The hero's of their party include FDR and Bill Clinton.

Republican:

Republicans hold a conservative or traditional philosophy towards social issues such as gay marriage (oppose) and abortion (oppose). They claim to support the middle class and small business (e.g. tax cuts and economic growth to create jobs).

Fiscally speacking, they beleive that the Federal government should play a passive role in bettering society because of the belief that private companies and local and state governments are more effective at meeting the people's needs than a large federal government. They beleive that the main role of the Federal government is to ensure national security. This means reducing taxes and ensuring a strong defense industry. They are criticized as beign the party of big business and the wealthy. The hero's of their party include Abraham Lincoln and Ronald Reagan.

What are the different government parties in the UK?

In the UK

Did you know there are ACTUALLY ten parties represented in the UK house of commons;-

Labour, Conservative, Liberal Democrat, Scottish National Party, Plaid Cymru, Ulster Unionist Party, Democratic Unionist Party, Social Democratic and Labour Party, Respect and Kidderminster Hospital Health Concern.

There are five Sinn Fein MP's elected in Northern Ireland but as they refuse to swear allegiance to the Queen they are unable to attend parliament.

What is a torrent?

Downpour: a heavy rain
a violently fast stream of water (or other liquid); "the houses were swept away in the torrent"
flood: an overwhelming number or amount; "a flood of requests"; "a torrent of abuse"

Q&A: Greece's financial crisis explained

European Union leaders have hailed an agreement to use funds from both Europe and the International Monetary Fund to help financially-crippled Greece as important for the euro zone.

So what's the problem in Greece?
Years of unrestrained spending, cheap lending and failure to implement financial reforms left Greece badly exposed when the global economic downturn struck. This whisked away a curtain of partly fiddled statistics to reveal debt levels and deficits that exceeded limits set by the eurozone.


How big are these debts?
National debt, put at €300 billion ($413.6 billion), is bigger than the country's economy, with some estimates predicting it will reach 120 percent of gross domestic product in 2010. The country's deficit -- how much more it spends than it takes in -- is 12.7 percent.


So what happens now?
Greece's credit rating -- the assessment of its ability to repay its debts -- has been downgraded to the lowest in the eurozone, meaning it will likely be viewed as a financial black hole by foreign investors. This leaves the country struggling to pay its bills as interest rates on existing debts rise. The Greek government of Prime Minister George Papandreou, which inherited much of the financial burden when it took office late last year, has already scrapped most of its pre-election promises and must implement harsh and unpopular spending cuts.

Will this hurt the rest of Europe?
Greece is already in major breach of eurozone rules on deficit management and with the financial markets betting the country will default on its debts, this reflects badly on the credibility of the euro. There are also fears that financial doubts will infect other nations at the low end of Europe's economic scale, with Portugal and the Republic of Ireland coming under scrutiny. If Europe needs to resort to rescue packages involving bodies such as the International Monetary Fund, this would further damage the euro's reputation and could lead to a substantial fall against other key currencies.


So what is Greece doing?
As already mentioned, the government has started slashing away at spending and has implemented austerity measures aimed at reducing the deficit by more than €10 billion ($13.7 billion). It has hiked taxes on fuel, tobacco and alcohol, raised the retirement age by two years, imposed public sector pay cuts and applied tough new tax evasion regulations.


Are people happy with this?
Predictably, quite the opposite and there have been warnings of resistance from various sectors of society. Workers nationwide have staged strikes closing airports, government offices, courts and schools. This industrial action is expected to continue.


How are Greece's European neighbors helping?
Led by Germany's Chancellor Angela Merkel, all 16 countries which make up the euro zone have agreed a rescue plan for their ailing neighbor. The package, which would only be offered as a last resort, will involve co-ordinated bilateral loans from countries inside the common currency area, as well as funds and technical assistance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

According to a joint statement on the EU Web site, a "majority" of the euro zone States would contribute an amount based on their Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and population, "in the event that Greece needed support after failing to access funds in the financial markets."

This means Germany will be the main contributor, followed by France. Although the announcement did not mention any specific figure, a senior European official quoted by Reuters said that the potential package may be worth around 20 billion euro (US$26.8 billion).

However any European-backed loan package requires the unanimous approval of European Union members, meaning any euro zone country would have effective veto power.