Enron investigators 'consider suing White House'

Officials investigating the collapse of Enron will reportedly sue the White House to gain access to documents.

A congressional source says the General Accounting Office wants to see documents from Vice President Dick Cheney's energy task force.

It has also been revealed Enron apparently failed to disclose many of its lobbying expenses to the US Congress last year as the energy trader headed toward financial disaster.

The discrepancy in Enron's lobbying expenses was discovered by the Washington-based Center for Responsive Politics.

Its executive director, Larry Noble, said: "It is particularly critical at this time for the public to have the full picture of Enron's lobbying activities."

The company's collapse prompted President George W Bush to call on Congress to reform pension laws and require more financial disclosure by corporations.

Mr Bush did not mention Enron by name in his State of the Union address.

Its former chairman, Kenneth Lay, was one of the president's biggest political supporters.