Crackdown on illegal working

Tony Merricks, chairman of the Construction Skills Certification Scheme, has been appointed to a top-level Home Office working group which has been set up to curb the estimated "hundreds of thousands" of illegal immigrant workers in this country.

The move comes in the wake of growing concern among construction leaders that a huge influx of illegal site labour is jeopardising the industry's efforts to improve its safety record, as well as undermining national agreements on pay and conditions.

At the same time, however, Home Secretary David Blunkett has announced steps to make it easier for firms legally to import foreign labour in areas of skills shortages.

The new working group is to be chaired by Home Office minister Beverley Hughes. She said: "The government is determined to deal with illegal working which fuels the underground economy, creates unfair competition and often involves dangerous and clandestine entry. This leaves workers vulnerable to dangerous conditions, poor pay and exploitation from unscrupulous employers and criminal trafficking gangs.

"By its very nature, the scale of illegal employment is very difficult to measure. But the most credible indicators suggest that the number could run into hundreds of thousands."

The watchdog group also includes representatives of the Confederation of British Industry, the TUC, and the Health & Safety Executive.

David Blunkett's so-called "managed migration" initiative was jointly announced with the Chancellor of the Exchequer as part of the latter's pre-Budget report last week.

Blunkett said the government will work with industry to identify areas with particular labour or skill shortages.

He said the work permit system will be streamlined. And the number of permits issued will be hugely increased. Overall, it is anticipated that 175,000 work permits will be processed this year compared with 45,000 in 1996.

There is an existing migrant labour scheme for agricultural workers. And new industry-specific schemes have been introduced in the hotel and food processing industries. There have been initial discussions this year on a special construction scheme.

There is free movement of labour between EU countries. But construction sites in the South East, in particular, have seen the arrival of large numbers of workers from eastern Europe. Safety concerns have focussed as much on their frequently inadequate grasp of English as on their legal status.

The Nationality, Immigration and Asylum Act 2002 already strengthens legislation to clamp down on illegal working. It gives immigration officers extra powers to enter business premises and requires public authorities, employers and banks to report suspected illegal working.