You can juggle the figures how you like.
The settlement for the PFI contract fiasco with EDS was "significantly less than the £42.7m sought". Presumably financial provision was made to cover whatever the High Court action decided and NATS must now be sitting on a tidy surplus having settled out of court....... one that COULD fund the pay claim.
Don't forget also that NATS is already benefiting from its staff in the form of a PENSIONS HOLIDAY .
Something else that was alluded to on BBC News24 is the repayment of certain loans by 2005/6. Don't have the full details I'm afraid, but it seems the terms of these "loans" don't look very good after that date.
Rgds BEX