EXCLUSIVE: An Express investigation found Home Office rule-breaking was rife at a 400-bed 3-star migrant hotel in central London.
Migrants living in a 3-star London hotel were found to be working illegally as couriers (Image: Phil Harris)
Asylum seekers have been caught working illegally outside a migrant hotel in central London, an Express investigation has revealed.
Over two nights, the Daily Express saw at least 10 different men leaving the migrant hotel before doing delivery work. They attached Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats-branded carriers to their bikes and attached mobile phones to their handlebars.
When the Express tried to speak to the migrants who appeared to be working illegally, they covered their faces and raced off on expensive e-bikes.
Other residents, who were drinking and taking drugs outside the 400-bed former 3-star hotel, attempted to physically intimidate our team. One man threatened to violently assault an Express reporter, shouting: “I’ll bust your head.”
Asylum seekers cannot work in the UK for at least a year when waiting for claims to be processed, and even those given permits cannot work as delivery drivers under Home Office rules.
But the security team for the Home Office site stood and watched residents’ antisocial behaviour and illegal working on both evenings.
When the security were approached for comment, they took photos of the Express team and told us to “direct all questions to the Home Office.”
They also refused to explain why there was a temporary fence obscuring a mass of courier bikes outside the hotel.
Reacting to the Express investigation, Lee Anderson MP said: “If this is the kind of behaviour British citizens and taxpayers are expected to tolerate in their own communities, then this Labour government has failed them massively.
“Ordinary Brits work hard every day—paying high taxes, supporting their families, and contributing to society. They should not have to worry about groups of unidentified, fighting-age males roaming the streets of their communities.”
The Home Office is planning to take action following the Daily Express’ investigation.
A spokesperson for the Home Office added: “Where reports of illegal working or anti-social behaviour are made, immigration enforcement teams in the Home Office investigate.
“We are taking action to clamp down on illegal working in all its forms, which is why we are introducing new laws to extend right to work checks for those in the gig economy, including for food delivery drivers.”
All of the delivery platforms claim to have checks in place to prevent illegal work and routinely block individuals whose credentials weren’t recognised on their systems.
This includes companies that operate ‘substitution’ systems that allow multiple riders to carry out courier work from a single account.
The Express understands Deliveroo has been monitoring rider activity around the hotel and acts quickly to suspend or offboard any accounts which abuse its platform.
When asked about the many riders outside the migrant hotel working with Deliveroo-branded equipment, the business, which provides takeaway services for around 75,000 restaurants, grocery stores, and retailers in the UK, said: “We have a dedicated team in place who ensure Deliveroo does not work with riders who don’t have the right to work in the UK.
“All riders, including substitutes, must complete right-to-work checks before onboarding with Deliveroo, which we are robust in monitoring with daily identity verification and most recently, additional checks when a rider logs in using a new device. We prevent riders who are unable to demonstrate a valid right to work in the UK from accessing the platform.
“We take our responsibilities extremely seriously and continue to strengthen our controls against misuse of our platform, with further measures in development.”
A spokesperson for the UK’s largest online delivery platform, Just Eat, whose food containers filled the hotel bike area, said: “Just Eat is committed to being a responsible partner and supporting the local communities we operate in. To uphold this commitment, we set clear standards and requirements for those who deliver on our behalf.
The Express tried to speak to migrants who were working illegally as delivery riders (Image: Phil Harris)
The bike store at the migrant hotel in central London is filled with courier bikes (Image: Steve Bainbridge)
Riders covered their faces as they zoomed away from the Express on expensive e-bikes (Image: Phil Harris)
“We are continuously strengthening our approach to ensure anyone who delivers through Just Eat’s platform has the right-to-work in the UK.
“Last year, Just Eat introduced a new mechanism requiring couriers to inform us that they are using substitutes and for these substitutes to complete right-to-work checks. We have now rolled out the next phase of substitute checks with enhanced biometric verification.
“Couriers are randomly prompted to complete a facial recognition test, ensuring the individual using the account’s facial data matches the right-to-work documentation held on our system. Any couriers who fail these checks are removed from the Just Eat network.”
The firm, which recorded more than £1 billion UK revenue at its most recent accounts, also welcomed the Government announcement earlier this year to extend right-to-work checks to all industries to tackle illegal immigration.
UberEats also said it was developing new technologies to identify illegal workers. “All couriers who use the Uber Eats app must undergo checks to ensure they have a legal right to work in the UK. Working with the Home Office and the rest of industry,” a spokesperson said.
“Uber Eats has launched new detection tools to crack down on anyone attempting to work illegally on our platform. As a result, we are removing fraudulent accounts and we are constantly reviewing and improving our processes.”
Imran Hussain, Executive Director of External Affairs at the Refugee Council, argued that the Home Office could stop people from breaking the rules to work by speeding up the processing of asylum claims.
“In our experience, refugees want to stand on their own two feet, play by the rules and contribute to British life,” he said. “The best way of preventing people from working when they are not supposed to is by ensuring they don’t spend months or even years stuck in limbo, unable to work, and instead have their applications decided quickly and efficiently.
“People with valid claims must be able to move on with their lives as refugees eligible to work in Britain, and those without valid claims returned with dignity. A very important first step for speeding this process up is for government to focus on getting asylum decisions right first time.”
When approached by the Express, the hotel’s owner said the venue was “under a private booking” and, therefore, it was “unable to comment on any operations or individuals within that booking.”
