A passenger has described the “torture” at Heathrow after a nationwide issue with Border Force e-gates caused significant disruption at airports across the country on Tuesday evening (7 May).

Fleur Lauriot, who was flying from Paris to London, recalled the chaos that unfolded as border officials rushed to manually process passport holders.

“We got off the plane and had no indication of what it was going to be like,” she told The Independent’s Simon Calder.

“As soon as we got to the airport we were greeted with queues.”

A Home Office spokesperson confirmed early on Wednesday that e-gates came back online shortly after midnight.