BAA wins break-up appeal
21.12.09
BAA has won its appeal against a Competition Commission ruling that it must sell three of its airports, although it is not clear at present whether this ruling will mean that it can keep the hubs. The Competition Appeal Tribunal today concluded ‘with the greatest reluctance’ a claim by BAA of ‘apparent bias’ in the Commission’s decision was successful.
The Competition Commission ruled in March that BAA should sell off three of the seven airports it owns across Britain - Gatwick, Stansted and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airports. BAA has already agreed to sell Gatwick to private investment fund Global Infrastructure Partners for £1.51 billion.
BAA challenged the legality of the Competition Commission’s decision to make it sell the airports. It put forward a case of ‘apparent bias’ saying that Professor Peter Mozier, one of the commission’s airports’ inquiry panel had ‘a powerful connection’ to the Manchester Airport Group which had been interested in buying Gatwick.
The Competition Appeal Tribunal backed BAA's claim and overturned the ruling, saying that ‘a fair-minded and informed observer would conclude that there was a real possibility of bias affecting the deliberations, thinking and ultimate outcome of the investigation.’
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