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London's Heathrow and Gatwick airports have been slammed by the UK's competition regulator for the standard of service they provide to air passengers.

The Competition Commission was particularly critical of the long queues faced by travellers at the airports.

It said that both Heathrow and Gatwick had "acted against the public interest by failing to manage security queuing and queue times so as to avoid unacceptable delays to passengers, crew and flights".

The criticism was made as part of a wider report by the Competition Commission into price controls at the airports.

Responding to the complaint the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) stressed that it would produce proposals to remedy the problem, with the Competition Commission having recommended that tougher service standards be introduced as a solution.

However BAA, the company which runs Gatwick and Heathrow, has warned that new price controls proposed by the Competition Commission could make it more difficult for the airports operator to improve standards.

BAA, owned by Spanish construction company Ferrovial, said that it was "absolutely committed" to improving the experience of passengers at its airports.

But the airports group said the Competition Commission was proposing a "dramatic" reduction in returns at Heathrow as well as recommending that prices be cut at Gatwick, which it claims is currently one of the busiest, yet cheapest, airports in Europe.

"We see little in the commission's report which delivers the incentives to transform the airports," said BAA chief executive officer Stephen Nelson.

"Nor do we believe that the commission recognises the scale and nature of the challenges we face in seeking to deliver a step change in the passenger experience," he added.

The Competition Commission has recommended that maximum airport charges at Heathrow should be set at £10.96 for 2008/09, with charges rising by no more than retail price index (RPI) inflation plus 7.5 per cent each year.

At Gatwick, it is recommended that a maximum charge of £5.48 be set for 2008/09, with subsequent annual increases of no more than retail price index (RPI) inflation minus 0.5 per cent.

But while BAA is unhappy at the proposed new price controls, the Competition Commission has insisted that its recommendations take into account the company's plans to spend money improving the airports.

"We recognise the importance of both Heathrow and Gatwick to the UK economy and hence the need over the next five years for BAA to undertake large capital expenditure programmes at both airports whilst also operating them efficiently and providing enhanced levels of service," said the commission's deputy chairman Christopher Clarke.

The recommendations on price controls at Gatwick and Heathrow over the next five years follow a six-month inquiry into the matter.

It will now be up to the CAA to determine the final level at which price controls are set, with a decision expected to be made by February or March next year.