In January, UK immigration enforcement teams made over 600 arrests, a 73% rise from the same month last year, as part of the Labour government’s strategy to combat undocumented migration and people-smuggling networks.
Officials reported that 609 arrests were made during inspections of over 800 businesses, including nail salons, restaurants, car washes, and convenience stores.
After taking office, Prime Minister Keir Starmer abandoned the previous Conservative government’s plan to deport undocumented migrants to Rwanda, instead vowing to dismantle criminal smuggling operations.
Home Secretary Yvette Cooper emphasized that businesses had long exploited illegal workers without consequences and pledged record-level enforcement alongside new legislation to target these gangs.
Undocumented migration, particularly the surge in small boat crossings from northern France, was a key issue in last year’s general election.
While regular migration remains historically high at an estimated 728,000 for the year ending June 2024, Starmer aims to curb both legal and illegal migration amid rising support for Nigel Farage’s anti-immigration Reform UK party.
Provisional data shows that 36,816 people crossed the Channel in 2024, a 25% increase from the previous year.
In response, Starmer has established a new Border Security Command and strengthened cooperation with European partners, signing joint action plans with Germany and Iraq to combat smuggling networks. The government also highlights an increase in deportations of irregular migrants, the highest since 2017.
A new Border Security, Asylum, and Immigration Bill, which would grant law enforcement “counter-terror style” powers to dismantle smuggling gangs, is set for its second reading in Parliament on Monday.
