Latest news with #EddyMontgomery
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Business Standard
6 days ago
- Business
- Business Standard
Deliveroo, Uber Eats to aid UK govt crackdown on illegal migrants
Now, food delivery firms will help the UK government tackle illegal migrants in the country. The UK Home Office announced on Wednesday that a new agreement with delivery platforms like Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats will give them access to new data, including the locations of asylum hotels, to help stop account misuse and illegal working. At present, riders found sharing their accounts with migrants who don't have the legal right to work in the UK face immediate suspension. Under the new deal, companies will receive more support and information to catch account fraud and close loopholes. 'Illegal working undermines honest business, exploits vulnerable individuals and fuels organised immigration crime,' said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. 'By enhancing our data sharing with delivery companies, we are taking decisive action to close loopholes and increase enforcement,' she added, citing tougher enforcement under the government's Plan for Change, a 50 per cent rise in immigration raids, and new legislation in the works. What the pact involves The agreement, which builds on a commitment made during a ministerial roundtable last month, encourages firms to: • Boost facial verification checks • Adopt fraud detection tools • Quickly suspend accounts with suspicious activity • Track account-sharing patterns near asylum hotel locations Eddy Montgomery, Director of Enforcement, Compliance and Crime at the Home Office, said, 'This next step of coordinated working with delivery firms will help us target those who seek to work illegally in the gig economy and exploit their status in the UK.' Raids up, penalties up According to the Home Office, more than 10,000 illegal working visits were conducted across sectors in the past year, resulting in 7,130 arrests — a 50 per cent increase over the previous year. In the first quarter of 2025, nearly 750 civil penalty notices were issued to companies caught breaching immigration rules, marking the highest figure since 2016 and an 80 per cent rise year-on-year. The government now wants to make it a legal requirement for all companies, including gig economy platforms, to carry out right-to-work checks. These changes are part of the proposed Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which includes measures to prevent the misuse of short-term contract roles by migrants without valid permission. The tougher enforcement comes just days after an undercover investigation by The Daily Telegraph• exposed how migrants from Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK) are entering the UK using fake documents and later applying for asylum. The report found that applicants were paying up to £50,000 (about ₹58.5 lakh) for UK visa applications stuffed with fraudulent job references and employment records. One such case involved a reference letter from a fake hospital in Mirpur. Who's getting asylum in the UK? • Pakistani asylum applications rose 79 per cent in a year, totalling 10,542 • Approval rates were: Pakistan and Afghanistan at 53 per cent, Iran at 64 per cent, Syria at 98 per cent, Eritrea at 87 per cent, and Sudan at 99 per cent Among the 40,000 asylum seekers who entered the UK last year on valid visas: • 16,000 were international students • 11,500 came on work visas • 9,500 arrived as visitors
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First Post
6 days ago
- Business
- First Post
UK has a plan to ensure illegal immigrants don't work as food delivery agents
The new government agreement aims to empower private firms to go further in detecting patterns of misuse, identifying unauthorised account sharing, and quickly suspending accounts. read more On Wednesday, the UK Home Office announced a new deal with food delivery companies like as Deliveroo, Just Eat, and Uber Eats that would guarantee they get latest details on the locations of asylum hotels to assist combat unlawful employment in the country. Any delivery riders who are detected sharing their accounts with migrants who do not have the right to work in the UK face suspension under existing security procedures. The new Home Office agreement pledges to go farther in catching more people who flout the laws. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Illegal working undermines honest business, exploits vulnerable individuals and fuels organised immigration crime,' said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. 'Data sharing with delivery companies, we are taking decisive action to close loopholes and increase enforcement. The changes come alongside a 50 per cent increase in raids and arrests for illegal working under the Plan for Change, greater security measures and tough new legislation,' she said. The new government agreement aims to empower private firms to go further in detecting patterns of misuse, identifying unauthorised account sharing, and quickly suspending accounts. The move follows the corporations' pledge to introduce new security measures during a cabinet roundtable meeting last month. This includes expanded facial verification and fraud detection systems, ensuring that only verified users will be able to access their platforms. 'This next step of coordinated working with delivery firms will help us target those who seek to work illegally in the gig economy and exploit their status in the UK,' said Eddy Montgomery, Director of Enforcement, Compliance and Crime at the Home Office. Official figures released this week claim that there have been more than 10,000 illegal working visits across multiple sectors over the past year, leading to 7,130 arrests, up around 50 per cent compared to the year before. This marks the first time in a 12-month period where more than 10,000 visits have taken place, the Home Office said. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD 'Almost 750 illegal working civil penalty notices were also handed to businesses caught violating immigration rules in the first quarter of the year, marking the highest level since 2016 – and an 80 per cent increase compared to the same time last year,' it states. It comes as the government works towards tightening the law by making it a legal requirement for all companies, including the short-term contracts-based gig economy, to check that anyone working for them has the legal right to do so. This is aimed at ending the abuse of flexible working arrangements, with the new measures to be introduced through the landmark Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill. It forms part of a series of measures introduced in recent weeks to clamp down on the large number of migrants living and working illegally in the UK.
News18
7 days ago
- Business
- News18
UK authorities partner with food delivery firms to target illegal working
London, Jul 23 (PTI) The UK Home Office announced on Wednesday that a new agreement with food delivery firms such as Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats will ensure they receive new information concerning the locations of asylum hotels to help tackle illegal working in the country. Under existing security measures, any delivery riders caught sharing their accounts with migrants without the right to work in the UK are suspended. The new Home Office agreement claims to go further to ensure more people who are breaking the rules can be caught. 'Illegal working undermines honest business, exploits vulnerable individuals and fuels organised immigration crime," said Home Secretary Yvette Cooper. 'By enhancing our data sharing with delivery companies, we are taking decisive action to close loopholes and increase enforcement. The changes come alongside a 50 per cent increase in raids and arrests for illegal working under the Plan for Change, greater security measures and tough new legislation," she said. Under the new government pact, the aim is to empower these private firms to go further in detecting patterns of misuse, identifying unauthorised account sharing and quickly suspending accounts. The move comes after a commitment made by the firms during a ministerial roundtable meeting last month to implement new security measures. This includes increased facial verification checks and fraud detection tools, meaning only verified users can access their platforms. 'This next step of coordinated working with delivery firms will help us target those who seek to work illegally in the gig economy and exploit their status in the UK," said Eddy Montgomery, Director of Enforcement, Compliance and Crime at the Home Office. Official figures released this week claim that there have been more than 10,000 illegal working visits across multiple sectors over the past year, leading to 7,130 arrests, up around 50 per cent compared to the year before. This marks the first time in a 12-month period where more than 10,000 visits have taken place, the Home Office said. 'Almost 750 illegal working civil penalty notices were also handed to businesses caught violating immigration rules in the first quarter of the year, marking the highest level since 2016 – and an 80 per cent increase compared to the same time last year," it states. It comes as the government works towards tightening the law by making it a legal requirement for all companies, including the short-term contracts-based gig economy, to check that anyone working for them has the legal right to do so. This is aimed at ending the abuse of flexible working arrangements, with the new measures to be introduced through the landmark Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill. It forms part of a series of measures introduced in recent weeks to clamp down on the large number of migrants living and working illegally in the UK. PTI AK NSA NSA view comments First Published: July 23, 2025, 16:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
Yahoo
07-06-2025
- Yahoo
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 says. Immigration 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 deportations. It 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 conditions. Such businesses had often subjected migrants to "squalid conditions and illegal working hours" as well as below-minimum wages. The Home Office said there were a range of industries exploiting migrant workers. In one case in Surrey, officers arrested nine people at a caravan park who had been working as delivery drivers. At 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 rights. Immigration 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 said. Dame 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 UK. It 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 some. There 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 migration. The 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.
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.
