A sentence is provided in indirect speech. From the four given options, choose the one that most accurately conveys the sentence in its corresponding direct speech. The supervisor told the staff that the submission deadline had been pushed back by two days. 

 The correct option is (b). The indirect speech states that the supervisor informed the staff about a change in the deadline: the submission deadline had been pushed back by two days. The phrase had been pushed back is past perfect passive, which typically appears in reported speech when the original direct statement was in a present-perfect or past form and is being reported later. To convert to direct speech, we remove the reporting clause and present the exact message. Option (b) gives a clear direct statement of the information: The submission deadline has been pushed back by two days. This matches the meaning accurately and keeps the passive idea of the deadline being extended (not focusing on who extended it).  Rules of conversion used: • Remove the connector that and reporting structure in direct speech. • Adjust tense appropriately: reported past perfect often corresponds to present perfect or a closer original tense in direct speech depending on context. • Maintain the same meaning: deadline extension by two days. Why other options are incorrect: Option A changes the content and adds interpretation; it does not directly state that the deadline was pushed back. Option C changes the structure to active and introduces 'we', which is not present in the reported sentence. Option D changes the meaning to an instruction about finishing within two days, which is different from extending the deadline. So the correct answer is (b)