Latest news with #illegalwork
Daily Mail
4 days ago
- Politics
- Daily Mail
Moment 'Deliveroo rider' is held in police crackdown on migrants working illegally after fast food delivery bikes were found outside Home Office-funded hotel
This is the dramatic moment a delivery rider was held by police officers as the crackdown on migrants working illegally in London 's West End intensifies. The man was patted down by an officer while another looked on, with a Deliveroo food bag seen on the floor in front of them during the Home Office -led operation. The officer's jacket was placed on top of the bag before the unnamed man was led towards a marked police van at Cambridge Circus yesterday lunchtime at 12.30pm. Police were also seen pulling over another food courier on a bicycle on nearby West Street, with that man ordered to stop before three officers spoke to him. One witness claimed he saw nine bikes being seized in total, adding: 'On every corner of the junction bikes were being stopped when approaching the lights. I was then told it was an operation to target the e-bikes and any illegal immigrants working.' MailOnline understands that someone wearing a Deliveroo branded kit does not necessarily work with the firm - and riders can use what they like because they are self-employed, as long as it meets Deliveroo's minimum safety requirements. But Deliveroo said: 'We have a zero tolerance approach to any criminal activity and all riders are DBS checked before onboarding with us. We investigate all reports of illegal activity and stop working with any rider found to have committed a crime.' It comes after migrants living in taxpayer-funded asylum hotels were revealed to be securing work as fast food delivery riders within hours of entering Britain. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said he had found evidence of asylum seekers breaking rules which bar them from working while their claim is processed by the Home Office. The Tory politician visited an asylum hotel in Central London and posted a video showing bicycles fitted with delivery boxes for Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats parked outside. In a letter to Home Secretary Yvette Cooper he urged her to begin action against all three firms and 'take urgent steps to stop illegal working from the very hotels that you are responsible for running '. Separately, it emerged that Deliveroo and Just Eat delivery accounts were being offered to migrants 'within 10 minutes of asking' through social media groups. Migrants were paying as little as £40 a week for other people's login details as riders for the delivery companies – a loophole the firms pledged to address more than a year ago. An undercover reporter posing as a small-boat arrival from Afghanistan was 'quickly flooded with offers from all over the country', The Sun reported. In his letter to the Home Secretary, Mr Philp said: 'Labour claim to be cracking down on illegal working, yet this is happening at the very hotels your Home Office is running, and which are being funding by taxpayer's money. 'This is important, as the ability to work illegally is a pull factor for illegal immigration and is fuelling the illegal immigration crisis.' In separate letters to the three delivery companies he urged them to 'commit to removing any driver as a courier who does not have the right to work in the UK, including at this hotel site and also elsewhere'. He added: 'I would be grateful if you would set out what further specific steps you will take (above what you currently do, which is evidently not working) in relation to this site and more generally to prevent illegal working. 'I will be writing to the Home Secretary to urge her to take urgent action via Immigration Enforcement against your company.' In April last year the firms agreed to close the loophole permitting riders to give jobs to 'substitutes' – meaning people with no right to work in the UK were able to get employment. Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats said they would introduce additional checks on 'account sharing' following talks with the Home Office. The Home Office said it amounted to a 'significant' change which would 'protect the British public's safety' from unvetted riders. A Downing Street spokesman said border security minister Angela Eagle will meet food delivery companies next week, adding that the Government will not stand for the 'racket'. He said: 'It's right that spotlight is being shone on this racket. It undermines honest businesses and undercuts local wages, and the British public rightly won't stand for it, and neither will this Government.' He said the Government has stepped up illegal working arrests and is strengthening the law to confirm immigration status and right to work. 'Minister Eagle is meeting food delivery companies next week, where she will address this issue and to drive further joint working on tackling illegal work.' A Just Eat spokesperson said: 'Just Eat is committed to being a responsible partner and supporting the local communities we operate in. To uphold this commitment, we set clear standards and requirements for those who deliver on our behalf. 'We are continuously strengthening our approach to ensure anyone who delivers through Just Eat's platform has the right to work in the UK. 'Last year, Just Eat introduced a new mechanism requiring couriers to inform us that they are using substitutes and for these substitutes to complete right-to-work checks. 'We have now rolled out the next phase of substitute checks with enhanced biometric verification. Couriers are randomly prompted to complete a facial recognition test, ensuring the individual using the account's facial data matches the right-to-work documentation held on our system. Any couriers who fail these checks are removed from the JET network. 'We welcomed the Government announcement earlier this year to extend right-to-work checks to all industries to tackle illegal immigration. We continue to work with the Home Office on this matter.' A spokesman for Deliveroo said: 'We have zero tolerance for any misuse of our platform and we will offboard any accounts which fail to meet their legal obligations when working with us. 'We have a dedicated team in place who ensure Deliveroo does not work with riders who don't have the right to work in the UK. 'We take our responsibility extremely seriously and are consistently strengthening our controls against misuse of our platform, with further measures in development. 'All riders, including substitutes, must complete right-to-work checks before onboarding with Deliveroo, which we are robust in monitoring with daily identity verification and most recently, additional checks when a rider logs in using a new device.' And an Uber spokesman said: 'All couriers who use the Uber Eats app must undergo checks to ensure they have a legal right to work in the UK. 'Working with the Home Office and the rest of industry, Uber Eats has launched new detection tools to crack down on anyone attempting to work illegally on our platform. As a result, we are removing fraudulent accounts and we are constantly reviewing and improving our processes.' A Home Office spokesman said: 'Illegal working undermines honest business and undercuts local wages – the public won't stand for it and neither will this government. 'That's why we have taken swift action to launch a nationwide crackdown on illegal working, with arrests up by 51 per cent since we took office. 'On top of that, our Borders Bill is changing the law to end the abuse of flexible working arrangements. 'For the first time, checks that confirm someone's immigration status and their right to work will be extended to all companies in the gig economy.'
The Sun
5 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Hotel migrants still illegally delivering takeaways – despite Home Office crackdown promise
BRAZEN migrants were still working illegally as fast-food delivery riders from asylum hotels yesterday — despite a crackdown promised by the Home Office following a Sun investigation. Three of the men were snapped leaving The Thistle City Barbican Hotel in central London — one of the hubs for the nationwide scandal. 3 3 3 On Tuesday, we revealed that small boat migrants work illegally as sub-contractors for companies such as Deliveroo and Just Eat within hours of arriving in Britain. And yesterday we reported that the Home Office was vowing to target the racket, threatening arrests and seizures of unsafe e-bikes. Migrants housed and fed by the tax-payer-funded hotels are banned from working if they have been in Britain for less than 12 months. Yet they can earn up to £1,000 a week, often using the cash to pay people smugglers or sending it abroad so relatives can save up to join them. Next week delivery business bosses will appear before Border Security and Asylum Minister Angela Eagle in Westminster. She is expected to tell them that the racket also undermines honest workers and undercuts wages. Last night, Just Eat said: 'We are continuously strengthening our approach to ensure anyone who delivers through Just Eat's platform has the right to work in the UK. "We continue to work with the Home Office.' Deliveroo said: 'We have zero tolerance for any misuse of our platform.' Uber said: 'All couriers using our app must undergo checks to ensure they have a legal right to work in the UK.'
BBC News
12-06-2025
- BBC News
Bournemouth store loses licence after employing illegal worker
A convenience store has been stripped of its licence to sell alcohol after employing a man with no right to work in the UK. Immigration officials raided the Premier Hillsides Store in Kinson Road, Bournemouth, in November after receiving a tip-off that a man from India was working there illegally. Dorset Police supported revoking the shop's premises licence at a meeting on 4 June and Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council confirmed it had been licence's holder, Sujeevan Muralimohan, told authorities he was "committed to upholding all legal and licensing objectives". The man found working illegally at the business said he had started working there in mid-October found he entered the UK on a student visa in 2022 but failed to enrol on his led to his visa being curtailed, making him an overstayer with no right to work in the country. You can follow BBC Dorset on Facebook, X (Twitter), or Instagram.
Daily Mail
07-06-2025
- Daily Mail
Arrests of undocumented migrants working illegally in UK surge 51 per cent as Home Office raids nail bars, building sites and restaurants
Arrests for illegal work have surged 51 per cent this past year after the Home Office raided restaurants, nail bars and construction sites throughout the UK. More than 6,400 people have been arrested over the last 12 months as police focus on 'unscrupulous' employers who exploit undocumented migrants. The data from the Home Office reveals that more than 9,000 businesses were visited for checks to be made on paperwork and working conditions. It did not provide how many of the arrests led to charges, convictions or deportations but said immigration enforcement officials had 'intensified' their work to 'tackle those abusing the UK immigration system and exploiting vulnerable people'. The Home Office said said there were a range of industries exploiting migrant workers with businesses often subjecting migrants to 'squalid conditions and illegal working hours' and below-minimum wages. Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Dame Angela Eagle, said: 'For too long, employers have been able to take on and exploit migrants, with people allowed to arrive and work here illegally. 'This will no longer be tolerated on our watch. That's why we are ramping up our enforcement activity and introducing tougher laws to finally get a grip of our immigration and asylum system. 'Under our Plan for Change, we will continue to root out unscrupulous employers and disrupt illegal workers who undermine our border security.' The video was released as part of the Home Office's attempts to project a tough stance on immigration enforcement It is a legal requirement for employers to carry out Right to Work checks and those who fail to do so face hefty penalties including fines of up to £60,000 per worker, director disqualifications and potential prison sentences of up to five years. Over the past year, the government said it had returned almost 30,000 people who did not have the right to be in the UK. In one case at a construction site in Belfast's historic Titanic Quarter in March, officers made 36 arrests with offences ranged from breaching visa conditions to illegal entry in the UK with no permission to work. Elsewhere, 9 arrests were made at a caravan park in Surrey last month following intelligence individuals were working illegally as delivery drivers in the gig economy. Meanwhile, 9 people were also arrested in Bradford in March as officers intercepted a popular illegal working pick up point in Naples Street. Director of Enforcement, Compliance and Crime at Immigration Enforcement Eddy Montgomery said: 'Our work to tackle illegal working is vital in not only bringing the guilty to account, but also in protecting vulnerable people from exploitation. 'I'm incredibly proud of our enforcement teams across the country for their hard work, skill and co-operation on these often challenging but highly important operations.'
BBC News
07-06-2025
- Politics
- BBC News
Illegal work arrests double in year as police target 'unscrupulous' employers
Arrests for illegal work have doubled in a year as police focus on "unscrupulous" employers who exploit undocumented migrants, the government officers arrested more than 6,400 people in the past year in raids at businesses across the UK, data released by the Home Office shows. It said the figure is 51% higher than the previous year. It did not provide numbers as to how many arrests led to charges, convictions or said immigration enforcement officials had "intensified" their work to "tackle those abusing the UK immigration system and exploiting vulnerable people". Officers had visited more than 9,000 businesses - among them restaurants, nail bars and construction sites - to check paperwork and working businesses had often subjected migrants to "squalid conditions and illegal working hours" as well as below-minimum Home Office said there were a range of industries exploiting migrant one case in Surrey, officers arrested nine people at a caravan park who had been working as delivery one one major operation in March, officers arrested 36 people at a building site in Belfast's Titanic Quarter. Some had breached visa conditions while others didn't have working Enforcement director Eddy Montgomery said there were many cases where people travelling to the UK were "sold a lie by smuggling gangs that they will be able to live and work freely in the UK."In reality, they often end up facing squalid living conditions, minimal pay and inhumane working hours," he Angela Eagle, the minister for border security and asylum, said the government would "continue to root out unscrupulous employers and disrupt illegal workers who undermine our border security".The government said it had also returned nearly 30,000 people over the past year who did not have the right to be in the has said it is cracking down on illegal migration, setting out its plans in a White Paper to tighten work visas and those overstaying. It scrapped a special visa for care workers introduced during the pandemic, noting that this had been a pathway exploited by was mixed reaction to the plans, with some business sectors decrying the restrictions on work visas, while some Conservative opponents said the reforms didn't go far enough to stop illegal most recent data shows that approximately 44,000 people have entered the UK illegally in the year to March 2025, more than 80% through small boat journeys.
