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The Sun
12 hours ago
- Politics
- The Sun
Blatant law-breaking of illegal migrant delivery riders is scam Del Boy would be proud of… I have five ways to stop it
I CONFESS my initial reaction to yesterday's report on The Sun's investigation into asylum seekers working illegally as food delivery drivers was a combination of frustration, disbelief and anger. Frustration because it seems the Government is no nearer to achieving its goal of tackling English Channel crossings than it was on July 5 last year. 4 Since coming into power, more than 41,500 small boat migrants have arrived — and that is just those we know about. Take a look at Migration Watch's Channel Tracker ( which monitors the number of illegal arrivals. I find it very difficult to believe that ministers do not see the connection between the ease with which traffickers can get migrants here, with a helping hand from Border Force and the RNLI. Migrants are even seen on their way with a cheery wave by the French authorities assembled on the beach. Having arrived on our shores and after a cursory check they are on their way to free accommodation, £40-plus pocket money a week and, now it seems, a job in one of the fastest-growing sectors in the economy. It beggars belief They earn money delivering food, to pay off their traffickers and to send cash home to their family so that they can eventually join them in the UK. What makes me and most ordinary, hard-working, taxpaying and fair-minded citizens angry is that the Government seems to think this is acceptable. After a year in office and abandoning the only possible deterrent, the Rwanda scheme — I make no apology for mentioning it again — and doing away with the legal requirement for the Home Secretary to remove illegal arrivals, the Government has done nothing to discourage migrants and traffickers. On the contrary, its actions, or rather inaction, has simply encouraged crossings. That's why, by the end of the year, I expect there to have been more than 50,000 illegal arrivals. Channel migrants queue for cash in hand jobs as secrets of UK's £260bn illegal economy revealed In fact, the total for the year so far stands at 18,400, which is almost 50 per cent higher than the number of small boat migrants who had crossed at this point in 2024. At this rate, could we see more than 60,000 arriving? I wouldn't rule it out. It seems the gig economy — Deliveroo, Just Eat and UberEats included — need not worry about a shortage of deliverers. I confess, The Sun's report yesterday almost made me smile. How could you not laugh at the description of the scene outside a hotel in Peckham where 'the entire courtyard was filled with bikes and bags surrounding a replica of the Only Fools And Horses [Reliant] three-wheeler'? 4 4 This scam, for that is what it is, would have made Del Boy proud. As for the reaction of ministers. It beggars belief. Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson, who, in fairness to her, commended The Sun's report, said: 'The Sun investigation is right to highlight this illegal working racket, which undermines honest business and undercuts local wages.' No kidding, minister. While Dame Angela Eagle, the Border Security and Asylum Minister, 'is meeting delivery companies next week, to help tackle illegal working in this sector.' I find that exasperating. This is the minister who sought to cast me a racist when I gave evidence to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, to explain that repealing the Safety of Rwanda Act would 'encourage illegal immigration'. I was right, it has. She brushed this aside by asking what Migration Watch meant by the word 'indigenous' on its website. She now, it seems, is committing to talking to gig economy companies about what they intend to do to stop the illegal migrant workers, who are helping them make huge profits. The real question is, what are you going to do about it Minister? May I suggest that, if you are serious about stopping blatant law-breaking and removing one of the major incentives for migrants to make their way to the UK, you should: Ban the likes of Deliveroo, Uber Eats and Just Eat from permitting their drivers to rent out their accounts. Impose punitive fines on the companies that turn a blind eye to this dangerous practice. Make clear that migrants found to be working illegally while awaiting a decision on their asylum application will not be granted asylum. Require the companies to control and monitor the issue of licences. Applicants for these accounts must be properly vetted to ensure they have the right to work, but also ensure they do not pose a danger to those they deliver to — especially women and the elderly. The business model for these companies thrives on easy-to-hire deliverers. While that may serve their interests and those of migrants and trafficking gangs, it does nothing for the taxpayer. Hard-working Brits are effectively subsidising the practice, by providing free accommodation and benefits to the migrants, who are, after all, people who have broken into our country and then been housed and looked after. They have to be stopped.
The Sun
2 days ago
- Business
- The Sun
Small boat migrants get illegal £1k-a-week delivery rider jobs within HOURS of landing in UK – as YOU fund their hotel
CHANNEL migrants are working as fast-food delivery riders within hours of arriving in the UK while being housed and fed at taxpayer expense. They rake in nearly £1,000 a week operating from asylum accommodation, used as hubs for black-market work on apps like Deliveroo and JustEat. 7 7 7 Migrants in hotels are banned from working in any circumstances if they have been in Britain for less than 12 months. Even those here longer are not allowed to legally work as delivery drivers. But at two packed hotels in London and one in Bournemouth — each one housing hundreds of asylum seekers — we snapped migrants in branded jackets for Deliveroo, JustEat and Uber Eats. Some rode £1,000 e-bikes while others used public-hire bicycles. Last night Shadow Justice Secretary Robert Jenrick said: 'This crucial Sun investigation reveals yet another appalling abuse of our immigration system. 'These delivery companies know exactly what they're doing. It's a disgrace and they need to be made to feel consequences.' We found Deliveroo and Just Eat accounts for rent on dozens of online forums — for as little as £40 a week. Migrants exploit a loophole allowing legitimate account holders to sub-let work, even though signing up for an account is free. One group has 20,000 members and sees dozens of posts a day advertising illicit accounts which require no documents. An undercover Sun reporter posing as a small-boat arrival from Afghanistan was offered an account ten minutes after signing up. When asked if having no documents was a problem, one 'Deliveroo dealer' told him: 'You will not be caught, Inshallah (Allah willing).' Many illegal workers use the cash on top of their living allowance to pay off people smugglers. Others send cash home for relatives to save up to join them. And government sources say the speed at which migrants are processed on quiet days means they can now start earning on delivery apps within hours of arriving in Dover. James Farrar, director of Worker Info Exchange, said: 'We know an example where Just Eat has paid 50 workers in a single bank account.' Legal worker Marcio Silver, 52, said: 'They are taking a lot of jobs, stealing food off our family's table.' The Sun understands the Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Angela Eagle, is meeting deliver companies next week, to help tackle illegal working in this sector. 7 7 Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson said: 'The Sun investigation is right to highlight this illegal working racket, which undermines honest business and undercuts local wages. 'The Government is taking action by increasing illegal working raids by 40 per cent since the election and introducing new tough laws to ensure every employer has to conduct full worker eligibility checks.' Our investigators found more than a dozen groups on social media dedicated to flogging delivery accounts to 'sub-contractors'. In almost all cases these turn out to be illegal migrants with no right to work in the UK Posing as a small boat arrival from Afghanistan, a Sun reporter using open Facebook groups was quickly flooded with offers from all over the country. One so-called 'Deliveroo dealer' wanted £80-a-week or £200-a-month to rent an account in West London. After we raised fears of being deported if discovered, the dealer insisted: 'You won't be caught in any way bro.' We then asked if he had rented accounts to small boat migrants before. He replied: 'Yeah sure bro, many times. 'You don't need to verify any identity — you're just renting account, not creating account. 'I will give you the login info, then you will make half payment of the weekly rent and you will login and start working. 'After you work for one week you will make the balance payment.' Asked how he would get round Deliveroo rules which require delivery workers to photograph themselves once a day, he added: 'Once it asks for selfie you will call or text me, then I will login and verify.' FROM BOAT TO BIKE IN HOURS 1. MIGRANTS climb on to dinghies in the waters off French beaches and begin the journey across the Channel. Once in UK waters, they are taken in by Border Force. 2. AT Dover, they arrive at a facility called Western Jet Foil where they are searched, given a set of dry clothes, shoes, food and water, and receive first aid if they were injured on the journey. They are then processed at a former military base at Manston. 3. CHECKS are done there in as little as three hours. Once complete, they are taken by coach to one of around 210 asylum hotels across the country. Migrants have no say in which hotel they are placed in. 4. ASYLUM seekers join one of dozens of social media groups offering accounts for rent. They pay as little as £40 a week to get login details for an account on Deliveroo or Just Eat. 5. MIGRANTS work 15-hour shifts using their hotels as a base for their bikes, bags and uniforms. They can rake in hundreds of pounds a week as handlers guarantee they will not be caught. We found another seller offering Just Eat accounts who said a migrant could make as much as £250-a-week just by working for a few hours a day. Online payment services could be used to get round not having a UK bank account. He stressed: 'You won't be caught, Inshallah (Allah willing). 'I will get everything prepared for you in an organised way.' Many of the 210 asylum hotels across Britain have become hubs for the scandal, which sees Channel migrants able to find illegal work within hours of coming ashore. Deliveroo and Just Eat riders can be seen entering and leaving the property at all hours. At the Thistle City Barbican Hotel in central London, a black screen had been erected to hide the illegal workers from public view. 'Horrible and aggressive' At least 100 bicycles and top-of-the-range electric bikes have been stored outside, with migrants brazenly riding off in Deliveroo, JustEat and Uber Eats branded jackets with matching food bags. Signs have been put up in the makeshift storage yard in English, Arabic, Persian, Pashto, Kurdish, Spanish and the African language of Tigrinya. One tracksuited asylum seeker in his 20s travelled two miles to King's Cross. He delivered an order from fried chicken shop Coqfighter to an unsuspecting customer. At the Best Western hotel in Peckham, South London, the entire courtyard was filled with bikes and bags — surrounding a replica of the Only Fools and Horses three-wheeler. As we watched, one migrant hotel guest exited the building and cycled away to begin his shift with a bag strapped to his back. In Bournemouth, three hotels are contracted to put up migrants. We witnessed one man leave the Chine Hotel, in Boscombe, with a Just Eat bag. 200K DELIVER GRUB TO BRITS By Thomas Godfrey THE food delivery industry is worth £15billion in the UK and uses more than 200,000 self-employed riders. Experts say the restaurant-to-door market is growing 12 per cent a year, with firms like Deliveroo and Just Eat ballooning from start-ups to giant firms in a decade. UK firm Deliveroo, which has 50,000 riders, processed £7.4billion of orders in 2024, turning a profit for the first time. US rival DoorDash is to buy the app for £2.9billion. US investment firm Prosus bought Danish-founded Just Eat for £3.4billion this year. It previously offered some riders sick pay but returned to a gig model in 2023 amid mounting losses. Both firms have vowed to back employment checks covering firms hiring gig economy and zero-hours workers. The Sun also watched as four men were seen cycling from The Britannia hotel in East Cliff with delivery goxes. Campaigners told The Sun that illegal work was making it almost impossible for legal delivery riders to cope. One, 52-year-old Marcio Silver, said: 'Sometimes one guy will work in the morning, and then another will take over and do it at night. 'Some are horrible and aggressive. They fight with customers and eat their food. It's bad for business. This is the Wild West, and there are no rules.' Consumer rights expert James Farrar, director of Worker Info Exchange, said: 'It's not surprising people actually having to pay for their own accommodation can't make ends meet.' Sources told The Sun that on quieter days, small boat arrivals can be processed in as little as three hours and sent to a taxpayer-funded hotel. The Sun investigation is right to highlight this illegal working racket, which undermines honest business and undercuts local wages. Policing Minister Dame Diana Johnson One added: 'Those coming here know that as soon as they reach UK waters, they are guaranteed a spot in a hotel which they don't have to pay for.' Lsst 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. 'Last year, we 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. Couriers are randomly prompted to complete a facial recognition test, which must match documentation held on our system.' Deliveroo said: '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 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 which we are robust in monitoring with daily identity verification and, most recently, additional checks when a rider logs in using a new device.' Uber Eats has more stringent checks than its rivals and far fewer sellers. A 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. '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.'
South China Morning Post
01-06-2025
- Business
- South China Morning Post
Keeta rider with no ID or work visa risks arrest to eke out living in Hong Kong
Azfar* struggles to make ends meet by working illegally as a rider for food delivery platform Keeta in Hong Kong, putting him at risk of arrest as he lacks an ID card and work visa. Advertisement For the past eight months, the 27-year-old Pakistani has used the Keeta rider account belonging to his cousin, a Hong Kong resident whom he pays HK$3,000 (US$382) a month under a 'rent' deal they struck. 'My cousin has been living in Hong Kong for a long time and he suggested that I use his food delivery [platform] account,' he said. 'After he scans his face to login for a shift, I take his phone to work.' Azfar is a non-refoulement claimant who holds a recognisance form, commonly known as a 'going-out pass', allowing him to temporarily stay in Hong Kong but not to work. After paying his cousin, he is left with about HK$17,000 a month, which he uses to cover the HK$6,000 rent for a tiny subdivided flat in Sham Shui Po and his daily expenses. Advertisement He is one of a significant number of illegal workers who operate as riders for food delivery platforms, which have become a pillar of the gig economy. Other than Keeta, Foodpanda is the other major local player after Deliveroo folded in April.
