The ban on deep water drilling was imposed in April. It followed the explosion on the deep water horizon oil rig which killed 11 people and allowed vast quantities of crude oil to leak from the sea bed into the waters of the Gulf of Mexico. The Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said that significant progress has been made in reducing the risks associated with deep water drilling. And he said oil companies would have to demonstrate that they can comply with new stricter safety standards. The administration's been under pressure to lift the deep water drilling ban both from oil companies and from local politicians who say the local economy is suffering.
A federal judge in the United States has ordered the government to immediately stop the dismissal of homosexuals serving openly in the armed forces. For the past 17 years, there has been a Don't Ask, Don't Tell policy, which means that service men and women can't admit to being homosexual for fear of dismissal.
A court in London has delayed until Wednesday a judgement with implications for the future of Liverpool Football Club. A majority of the Club's directors have agreed to a proposed takeover by the American owners of the Boston Red-Sox Baseball Team. But Liverpool's current American owners Tom Hickson, George Jones want to pursue other office. On Tuesday, two further bids for the Club emerged, one from a Singapore businessman and another from an American hedge fund.
World News from the BBC.