Alongside the summit, ministers today announced a crackdown on illegal working – with tough ‘right to work’ checks on workers in the gig economy and fines of up to £60,000 or prison time for rogue employers
Meta, X and TikTok will attend a landmark UK immigration crime summit this week – as the government ramps up plans to stop gangs luring people into dangerous channel crossings.
The three social media giants will attend an Organised Immigration Crime Summit in London this week (31-1 April) – along with delegates from as many as 40 countries.
Alongside the summit, ministers today announced a crackdown on illegal working – with tough ‘right to work’ checks on workers in the gig economy and fines of up to £60,000 or prison time for rogue employers.
And the UK escalated its battle against criminal gangs advertising perilous crossings on social media.
The Sunday Mirror has highlighted how people smuggling gangs use social media platforms – including TikTok – to advertise perilous Channel crossings.
As well as working with western platforms to take down ads from ruthless people smugglers, the UK will for the first time advertise on Zalo – Vietnam’s biggest instant messaging and social platform with 77 million monthly users.
Vietnamese people became the largest nationality group crossing the channel last year – with the government partially blaming smugglers’ ‘lies’ on social media for the surge.
Posts frequently use coded messages to evade content moderation, such as referring to small boat crossings as a ‘game.’
And smugglers have offered discounts to people who film their journeys – so they can use the footage in future ads.
Dame Angela Eagle, the Border Security Minister said: “People smugglers are always looking for new ways to peddle their vile trade and we are exposing their lies at every opportunity.
“This government is securing our borders and delivering on our Plan for Change, dismantling the criminal gangs who abuse our borders and warning migrants about the risks and realities of coming to the UK illegally.”
UK Government ads will run on Zalo and Vietnamese news aggregator Báo Mới in the coming weeks, the first time they have ever advertised on these platforms.
For the first time firms hiring people in the ‘gig economy’ will have to check they’re eligible to work in the UK under new laws to be put before Parliament later in the year.
Currently thousands of employers in the construction, food delivery, beauty salons and courier service industries are not required to check the status of people they hire.
Employers who fail to carry out the checks will face hefty penalties, including fines of up to £60,000 per worker, business closures, director disqualifications and potential prison sentences of up to five years.
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“Turning a blind eye to illegal working plays into the hands of callous people smugglers trying to sell spaces on flimsy, overcrowded boats with the promise of work and a life in the UK,” Yvette Cooper, the Home Secretary said
“These exploitative practices are often an attempt to undercut competitors who are doing the right thing. But we are clear that the rules need to be respected and enforced.
“These new laws build on significant efforts to stop organised immigration crime and protect the integrity of our borders, including increasing raids and arrests for illegal working and getting returns of people who have no right to be here to their highest rate in half a decade.”
