Just five years ago, coal was flourishing in the U.S. With electricity demand and the price of natural gas both rising, coal was viewed as essential to keeping power costs under control.

MSN: Coal producers find themselves in a hard place

He told the Today programme's James Naughtie that the public would not have believed the "abuses of power" committed by undercover officers under the control of senior police had they not been reported in the media.

BBC: Call for undercover policing inquiry

But the Treasury's power over the pair is limited as long as they remain under the control of the Federal Housing Finance Agency, an independent agency.

ECONOMIST: America's housing market

While Tokyo Electric Power Company (Tepco) has been grappling to bring the crisis under control, it has been hard to predict the extent of damage caused to the plant and also to the surrounding areas because of radiation leaks.

BBC: Japan debt outlook cut to negative on rebuilding costs

The BBC's Christian Fraser, in Paris, says that with the senate already under the control of the Socialists, a majority in the lower house would give Francois Hollande unprecedented power to force through his reform programme.

BBC: France in parliamentary election key to Hollande agenda