US Supreme Court temporarily unfreezes Trump ballroom construction

The US Supreme Court has temporarily allowed construction of the White House ballroom to move forward.

The decision on Friday by Chief Justice John Roberts, issued as a stay, will allow US President Donald Trump's $400m (£297m) project to continue as the high court mulls over a case aiming to halt it entirely.

The stay will remain in place pending further action from the court.

The case, originally filed by a preservation group that argues the project would become irreversible unless stopped immediately, was appealed to the high court after a federal appeals court had ordered work to halt earlier this month.

The appeals court ruled that Trump was a "temporary tenant" of the White House and could not make the alterations without congressional approval. It gave the administration two weeks to appeal the decision.

The National Trust for Historic Preservation, a preservation group, has led the lawsuit against the ballroom, arguing it is causing irreversible damage to a historical landmark.

"We are aware of the administrative stay," the group told the BBC on Friday. "To be clear, this is not a final decision on the merits of the government's stay application, and we await further action."

Trump posted on social media that he is grateful for the Supreme Court's decision, saying the new complex is "vital for National Security".