Mr Matthews said he regretted the disruption which had been caused by an intermittently-faulty positioning sensor in the baggage system.

He added that T5 was working well, prompting the committee's chairman, Louise Ellman, to ask him: ``So it won't happen again?''

Mr Matthews replied: It's not going to happen again. I am sure of that.``

While the committee was sitting, the Competition Commission (CC) announced that BAA's appeal against the CC's decision requiring BAA to sell Gatwick and Stansted airports and either Glasgow or Edinburgh airport would start on October 19, with four days being set aside for it.