Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
One immigration Dozens of actions will be seen delivery rider exiled After being found working illegally in the UK.
A targeted crackdown on workers in the so-called gig-economy led to 171 arrests across the country last month, with 60 of them being detained for deportation from Britain.
Video footage released by home office The sweeping crackdown showed officers escorting an arrested man into the back of an immigration enforcement van and arresting another man on his bike in the street.
Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood He was also present at an operation in Streatham, south London.
Those arrested include a Chinese national working at a restaurant in Solihull, West Midlands, Bangladeshi and Indian riders in Newham, east London, and Indian delivery riders in Norwich, Norfolk.
The campaign comes as ministers crackdown on people working in Britain illegally, as part of efforts to stop people coming into the country illegally.
Ms Mahmood last month launched a series of reforms to the asylum system, aimed at making the UK less attractive for illegal migration and making it easier to deport people.
Border Security Minister Alex Norris said: “These results should send a clear message that if you are in this country working illegally, you will be arrested and removed.”
“As well as providing record levels of enforcement, we are toughening up the law to crack down on those operating illegally in the delivery sector to root out this criminality from our communities.
“This action is part of the most comprehensive changes to illegal migration in modern times to reduce the incentives that attract illegal migration and increase removals.”
Home Office figures show there were 8,232 arrests of illegal workers in the year to September, a 63 per cent increase compared to 5,043 in the previous 12 months.
Ministers are also working with companies Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats to address concerns of abuse in the sector and increase identity checks to tackle account-sharing.
The Home Office also agreed in July to share refuge hotel locations with food delivery companies to tackle suspected hotspots of illegal working.
The action comes as the government’s new Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act became law on Tuesday, which includes measures to close “loopholes” for casual, temporary or sub-contracted workers who must prove their status.
Employers who fail to check can face up to five years in prison, a fine of £60,000 for each illegal worker they employ, and the closure of their business.
