A commission investigating the response to the BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico has strongly criticised the White House in a number of areas.
The Obama administration blocked government scientists’ efforts to inform the public of worst case scenarios, a draft report said.
Officials were said to have been too optimistic about handling the disaster, one of the worst in US history.
The White House disputes this, saying officials “were clear with the public”.
But the BBC’s Steve Kingstone, in Washington, says the accusations will embarrass the White House, coming as they do from a commission appointed by President Barack Obama.
‘Controlling information’
The report by the National Oil Spill Commission says the White House was directly involved in controlling information from the spill that began after an explosion on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig on 20 April.
(Read more from bbc.co.uk)