英国新闻听力

The Obama administration has designated the massive oil spill in the Gulf¹ of Mexico as an event of national significance, a move which allows it to draw on resources from across the country to deal with the leak. Mr Obama said everything possible was being done to tackle the problem.

"The Department of Interior has announced that they will be sending SWAT teams to the Gulf to inspect all platforms and rigs. And I have ordered the secretaries of interior and Homeland Security to visit the site on Friday to ensure that BP and the entire US government is doing everything possible, not just to respond to this incident but also to determine its cause."

A state of emergency has been declared in Louisiana whose coastline is the most threatened by the spill. As many as 5,000 barrels of oil a day may now be leaking into the sea after last week's explosion on a drilling rig which then sank.

Britain's three main political leaders have confronted each other over the country's economic difficulties in the third and final televised debate before next week's general election. How to tackle the country's huge budget deficits² was at the heart of some exchanges. Here is our political reporter Naomi Grimley.

After a miserable³ 24 hours for Gordon Brown he used his opening statement to argue that being prime minister was tough. "I don't always get things right," he said, in a reference to his unguarded remarks about an elderly voter he met on Wednesday. But David Cameron called Mr Brown a desperate man and said the Conservatives were the only party to get the country out of its economic rots. As for Britain's third leader Nick Clegg, he criticized his opponents for their old-style politics, telling the audience the Liberal Democrats⁴ would do something different.

Belgium has moved a step closer to becoming the first European country to ban Islamic full-face veils in public places. MPs approved the legislation which now goes to the senate. It can recommend changes but not overturn the new law. Parliament in France is due to debate a similar law later this year. From Brussels here is Dominic Hughes.

Belgian members of parliament gave the new law their overwhelming backing, just two abstentions and no votes against. The law makes no direct reference to full-face veils like niqabs or burkas. Instead it bans clothing that hides someone's identity in public places like parks, buildings or on the street. Some MPs back the law on the grounds of security; others say the full-face veil is a symbol of the oppression of women. The Muslim executive of Belgium has criticized the new law arguing that it would lead to women who do wear the veil being trapped in their homes.

Senators in the United States have begun a debate on the most sweeping⁵ financial reform since the 1930s. The legislation is designed to help avoid a repeat of the global crisis. The Democrats want to tighten⁶ controls over the financial services industry, but the opposition⁷ Republicans object to much of the new bill, in particular a plan for a consumer protection agency.

Iraqi officials say a manual recount of the ballots⁸ for Baghdad will start on Monday and may take up to two weeks. The partial recount follows a successful appeal by the incumbent⁹ Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki who came a close second in last month's parliamentary election. His opponents say Mr al-Maliki is abusing the law to change the result of the election and to disqualify his political enemies.

A car bomb has exploded near an alcohol shop in Baghdad. At least eight people are reported to have been killed in the blast which happened in a busy area, southwest of the city.

The European Commission has said it expects a rescue package for Greece to be finalized¹⁰ in a few days. After meeting officials of the International Monetary¹¹ Fund, the Commissioner¹² of Economic and Monetary Affairs Olli Rehn said the package would give the Greek economy some breathing space. Analysts¹³ say Germany might be closer to endorsing¹⁴ its share of the bailout.

The Turkish government has given the long-awaited go-ahead for a third bridge spanning the busy Bosphorus waterway dividing the city of Istanbul and the continents of Europe and Asia. When it's finished in about five years time, the suspension bridge will be one of the longest of its kind in the world. Jonathan Head sent this report from the city.

For all its scene and beauty, the Bosphorus is very inconvenient¹⁵ for the inhabitants of Istanbul. One hundred and forty million cars cross the two existing Bosphorus bridges every year causing almost continuous traffic jams on them. So the long-awaited announcement of a third bridge will be welcomed by some but not everyone. Critics who include environmentalists, architects and city planners argue that the bridge will do little to solve Istanbul's traffic woes¹⁶.

From today women are allowed to serve on board United States' submarines. Congress had until today to object to the policy shift but didn't. It's expected it will take up to a year before the first women can be trained for submarine duties and before separate quarters can be built for them.

1 gulf   

n.海湾；深渊，鸿沟；分歧，隔阂

参考例句：

• The gulf between the two leaders cannot be bridged.两位领导人之间的鸿沟难以跨越。
• There is a gulf between the two cities.这两座城市间有个海湾。

2 deficits   

n.不足额( deficit的名词复数 )；赤字；亏空；亏损

参考例句：

• The Ministry of Finance consistently overestimated its budget deficits. 财政部一贯高估预算赤字。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Many of the world's farmers are also incurring economic deficits. 世界上许多农民还在遭受经济上的亏损。 来自辞典例句

3 miserable   

adj.悲惨的，痛苦的；可怜的，糟糕的

参考例句：

• It was miserable of you to make fun of him.你取笑他，这是可耻的。
• Her past life was miserable.她过去的生活很苦。

4 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

5 sweeping   

adj.范围广大的，一扫无遗的

参考例句：

• The citizens voted for sweeping reforms.公民投票支持全面的改革。
• Can you hear the wind sweeping through the branches?你能听到风掠过树枝的声音吗？

6 tighten   

v.(使)变紧；(使)绷紧

参考例句：

• Turn the screw to the right to tighten it.向右转动螺钉把它拧紧。
• Some countries tighten monetary policy to avoid inflation.一些国家实行紧缩银根的货币政策，以避免通货膨胀。

7 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

8 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

9 incumbent   

adj.成为责任的，有义务的；现任的，在职的

参考例句：

• He defeated the incumbent governor by a large plurality.他以压倒多数票击败了现任州长。
• It is incumbent upon you to warn them.你有责任警告他们。

10 finalized   

vt.完成（finalize的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• The draft of this article has been finalized [done]. 这篇文章已经定稿。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The draft was revised several times before it was finalized. 稿子几经删改才定下来。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 monetary   

adj.货币的，钱的；通货的；金融的；财政的

参考例句：

• The monetary system of some countries used to be based on gold.过去有些国家的货币制度是金本位制的。
• Education in the wilderness is not a matter of monetary means.荒凉地区的教育不是钱财问题。

12 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

13 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

14 endorsing   

v.赞同( endorse的现在分词 )；在（尤指支票的）背面签字；在（文件的）背面写评论；在广告上说本人使用并赞同某产品

参考例句：

• Yet Communist leaders are also publicly endorsing religion in an unprecedented way. 不过，共产党领导层对宗教信仰的公开认可也是以前不曾有过的。 来自互联网
• Connecticut Independent Senator Joseph Lieberman is endorsing Republican Senator John McCain. 康涅狄格州独立派参议员约瑟夫。列波曼将会票选共和议员约翰。麦凯恩。 来自互联网

15 inconvenient   

adj.不方便的，令人感到麻烦的

参考例句：

• You have come at a very inconvenient time.你来得最不适时。
• Will it be inconvenient for him to attend that meeting?他参加那次会议会不方便吗？

16 woes   

困境( woe的名词复数 )； 悲伤； 我好苦哇； 某人就要倒霉

参考例句：

• Thanks for listening to my woes. 谢谢您听我诉说不幸的遭遇。
• She has cried the blues about its financial woes. 对于经济的困难她叫苦不迭。