London Heathrow Airport (LHR) in the UK is planning to install hi-tech gates that will allow passengers to pay £50 to fast-track immigration queues.

The new £7m system will be able to read biometric passports, and is due to be installed in Terminal 4 by 2010.

The gates will replace the current iris recognition immigration system (IRIS) process.

The £50 charge levied will help cover the cost of the gates.