Overview
- Immigration Enforcement’s Operation Equalize ran for seven days last month and resulted in 171 arrests nationwide, with 60 detainees slated for removal.
- Cases cited include two Chinese workers at The Jade Wok in Solihull, four Bangladeshi and Indian riders in Newham, and three Indian riders in Norwich, with Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood present at a Streatham operation.
- The Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Act has received Royal Assent, extending right-to-work checks to gig and casual roles and enabling penalties of up to five years in prison and £60,000 per illegal worker, with possible business closure.
- The Home Office says Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats are stepping up randomised facial-recognition checks, with asylum-hotel locations shared to identify suspected hotspots and tackle account sharing.
- Officials cite a sharp rise in enforcement activity over the past year, including more than 11,000 visits and 8,232 arrests of illegal workers, alongside increases in removals and people-smuggling disruptions.