Rachel Reeves plots £1m crackdown on illegal workers in 3 jobs | UK | News
Rachel Reeves is set to allocate more funds to crack down on dangerous businesses employing illegal workers in a bid to boost the economy. The illegal work is targeted to relieve pressure on legitimate businesses that are being “undercut” by “unscrupulous” businesses.
Additional funding is expected to be announced in the Chancellor’s autumn budget next week; A new investigation team is expected to work in coordination with HMRC and Immigration to present a £1 million budget to strengthen employers’ efforts to chase down unpaid staff or recruits without the right to work in Britain.
This follows a crackdown by the Government to undertake illegal work, The Telegraph reports. Last month the Government said arrests for illegal work had risen to “their highest levels since records began following an increase in law enforcement”.
The government said official figures showed more than 8,000 illegal immigrants had been arrested by the Immigration Service following 11,000 raids from October last year to September 2025.
The government has previously transferred £5 million to Immigration Enforcement as part of Operation Sterling, focusing on the targeting, arrest, detention, deportation and return of illegal workers working in fast food delivery services, takeaways, car washes and beauty salons.
The latest data revealed that arrests and visits increased by 63 percent and 51 percent, respectively, on an annual basis. More than 1,050 foreign nationals encountered during these operations were removed from the UK.
A spokesman said the aim of providing more money to support the implementation of the Budget was to “ensure businesses that don’t follow the rules are not disrupted by those who ignore the rules, making the system fairer for everyone”, the newspaper reported.
