The Home Office has finally agreed to share the location of asylum hotels with food delivery companies to help crack down on migrant illegal working.
Deliveroo said last week it had asked civil servants for the hotel addresses so it could block accounts operating from these locations, only to be refused due to ‘safety concerns’ for hotel occupants.
But the Home Office has now changed its stance and will share this information with Deliveroo, as well as its competitors Just Eat and Uber Eats.
Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary, said tonight: ‘Illegal working undermines honest business, exploits vulnerable individuals and fuels organised immigration crime.
‘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% increase in raids and arrests for illegal working under the Plan for Change, greater security measures and tough new legislation.’
Last month it emerged that migrants living in taxpayer-funded asylum hotels – including those who arrived by small boat – are 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.
Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp found fast food delivery bicycles ouitside a central London asylum hotel last month
A large number of delivery driver bikes were found parked outside the hotel despite a ban on asylum seekers working
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.
Days later, the Home Office said it had called in all three companies for a dressing down – and the meeting led to pledges to introduce ‘facial recognition’ systems on rider apps, such as those used by banks to confirm someone’s identity.
However, Deliveroo was refused access to hotel location data despite assurances it would be treated confidentially, the Times reported.
Shadow Home Office minister Katie Lam said at the time: ‘The fact that the Home Office is refusing to help them just shows how topsy-turvy this country’s approach to migration has become.
‘Crossing the Channel illegally is a crime. Working here illegally is a crime.
‘Too many people are brazenly breaking the rules and it’s a disgrace that the Home Office is aiding and abetting them.’
Mr Philp posted a video on social media of riders leaving the hotel
Eddy Montgomery, Director of Enforcement, Compliance and Crime at the Home Office, said following tonight’s u-turn: ‘This next step of co-ordinated 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.
‘My teams will continue to carry out increased enforcement activity across the UK and I welcome this additional tool to disrupt and stop the abuse of our immigration system.’
The Government has also announced the trialling of AI-powered facial recognition technology to determine whether Channel migrants are being wrongly identified as children.
The Home Office announced testing on new technology will begin later this year with the hope it could be fully integrated into the asylum system in 2026.
Ministers admitted that assessing the age of asylum seekers is ‘an incredibly complex and difficult task’ but said AI might soon provide quick and cost-effective results.
More than 23,000 migrants have crossed the Channel so far this year, up more than 50 per cent on the same point last year and the highest number in the first six months since figures began in 2018.
The Home Office says there are 32,345 asylum seekers being put up at taxpayer expense in hotels, with another 66,683 in houses and flats.
These have regularly been the target of protests, some of which have turned violent.
