Heathrow compo bill could be billions

British taxpayers could be forced to pay £2bn (€3.2bn ) in compensation to people affected by night flights out of Heathrow airport, it was reported today.

The British government is appealing a European Court of Human Rights judgment that night flights from the world’s busiest international airport violated the human rights of people living nearby.

The British government has calculated it could have to compensate up to 500,000 people whose sleep may have been disturbed, according to the contents of confidential documents reported in the Financial Times.

The eight residents who won the legal action in October last year were each awarded £4,000 (€6,439) in compensation after the Strasbourg court ruled the Department of Transport unfairly breached the right to respect for private and family life.

The Financial Times said the Department of Transport has now calculated that between 100,000 and 500,000 people living near the west London airport could have a case for compensation if the government fails to have the ruling overturned.

This could result in a compensation bill of between £400m (€643.8m) and £2bn (€3.2bn).

The bill could be even higher if people living near other airports, such as Gatwick and Stansted, took legal action, the newspaper said.

Aviation minister David Jamieson announced last month that the Government is to appeal against the European Court of Human Rights’ judgment, passed on October 2, last year.