The UK government would not block a foreign takeover of airports operator BAA on nationality grounds so long as safety and security standards were met, the Department of Transport said on Friday.

Spain's Grupo Ferrovial has said it is considering a bid for BAA, which owns seven airports including Heathrow, Stansted and Gatwick, and controls more than 90 percent of airline passenger traffic in and out of London.

But Britain, which has tended not to intervene in corporate mergers and acquisitions, is unlikely to be worried by a possible foreign takeover of BAA, which analysts say could be worth GBP