Crackdown on illegal working across the North West
Over 1,100 enforcement visits made across the North West since the election as part of Home Office drive to combat illegal working
Over 600 arrests and 1,100 enforcement visits have been carried out across the North West since the election as part of a drive to disable the illegal working trade in the UK.
Immigration Enforcement teams have intensified activity across Cheshire, Cumbria, Manchester and Merseyside to tackle those abusing the UK immigration system and exploiting vulnerable people. It forms part of the Government’s efforts to crack down on organised immigration crime at every level under the Plan for Change.
Particular focus has been on tackling employers facilitating illegal working, often subjecting migrants to squalid conditions and illegal working hours below minimum wage. Restaurants, nail bars and construction sites have been among the thousands of businesses targeted.
Since July 5 last year, to May 31, 1,113 visits resulted in 622 arrests, marking a 49% and 31% rise respectively compared to the year before (5 July 2023 to 31 May 2024).
The action forms part of a nationwide intensification which has seen illegal working visits increase by 48% and arrests spike by 51% across the UK.
The new measures come alongside a ramp-up of operational activity to restore control of the immigration system, including the return of nearly 30,000 people with no right to be in the UK.
Minister for Border Security and Asylum, Dame Angela Eagle, said: "Immigration rules must be respected and enforced. That’s why we are intensifying activity in the North West and across the UK to tackle organised immigration criminals at every level.
"These figures send a clear message that there is no hiding place from the law. Under our Plan for Change, we are going further and faster than ever before to secure our borders and fix our immigration system."
During one visit on 23 April, immigration officers attended a car wash in Morecambe which resulted in three illegal working arrests. A Compliance Order was subsequently handed to the business at Carlisle Magistrates Court. This will see officers keep close tabs on the business through monthly visits to ensure it is complying with immigration rules.
Ramping up illegal working enforcement activity forms a key part of the Home Office’s drive to restore order to the immigration system under the UK Government’s Plan for Change.
In many cases, individuals travelling to the UK illegally are sold a lie by smuggling gangs that they will be able to live and work freely in the UK, when in reality they often end up facing squalid living conditions, minimal pay and inhumane working hours, with the threat of arrest and removal if they are caught working illegally.