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| Version 0 | Version 1 |
|---|---|
| 5,000 'illegals' work in security | 5,000 'illegals' work in security |
| (30 minutes later) | |
| About 5,000 illegal immigrants were mistakenly cleared to work as security staff, the Home Office has said. | About 5,000 illegal immigrants were mistakenly cleared to work as security staff, the Home Office has said. |
| The Metropolitan Police confirmed that some of those who were not properly vetted by the Security Industry Authority had been working for them. | The Metropolitan Police confirmed that some of those who were not properly vetted by the Security Industry Authority had been working for them. |
| Ministers ordered fresh checks on 40,000 people after it emerged the SIA was not checking applicants could work in the UK before granting licences. | Ministers ordered fresh checks on 40,000 people after it emerged the SIA was not checking applicants could work in the UK before granting licences. |
| The Conservatives described the Home Office as "still not fit for purpose". | The Conservatives described the Home Office as "still not fit for purpose". |
| According to the Sunday Mirror, illegal immigrants were also working at airports and ports. | According to the Sunday Mirror, illegal immigrants were also working at airports and ports. |
| Removal from UK | Removal from UK |
| The government review of 40,000 security staff given licences by the security regulatory body over the past three years is expected to be completed shortly, the Home Office said. | The government review of 40,000 security staff given licences by the security regulatory body over the past three years is expected to be completed shortly, the Home Office said. |
| A spokeswoman for the department said about 5,000 illegal immigrants were estimated to have been identified by the review. | A spokeswoman for the department said about 5,000 illegal immigrants were estimated to have been identified by the review. |
| Anyone found to be working illegally would have their licence taken away and would face removal from the UK, the Home Office said. | Anyone found to be working illegally would have their licence taken away and would face removal from the UK, the Home Office said. |
| What is extraordinary about this latest Home Office fiasco is that we have been through this before Damian Green, shadow immigration minister | What is extraordinary about this latest Home Office fiasco is that we have been through this before Damian Green, shadow immigration minister |
| It later emerged that staff employed by the Metropolitan Police through a contract company were suspected illegal immigrants. | It later emerged that staff employed by the Metropolitan Police through a contract company were suspected illegal immigrants. |
| A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Police said after the force was informed in April that a number of people from a contract company might be working illegally they were removed from police work. | A spokeswoman for the Metropolitan Police said after the force was informed in April that a number of people from a contract company might be working illegally they were removed from police work. |
| The contract company also suspended them until investigations were completed, she said. | The contract company also suspended them until investigations were completed, she said. |
| The Met refused to say what jobs they had been undertaking, or how sensitive the positions were. | The Met refused to say what jobs they had been undertaking, or how sensitive the positions were. |
| Shadow immigration minister Damian Green said: "What is extraordinary about this latest Home Office fiasco is that we have been through this before. | Shadow immigration minister Damian Green said: "What is extraordinary about this latest Home Office fiasco is that we have been through this before. |
| "Last year the Home Office discovered it was employing illegal immigrants as cleaners in the immigration department itself. | "Last year the Home Office discovered it was employing illegal immigrants as cleaners in the immigration department itself. |
| "From these new revelations it looks like no effective action was taken to check who has access to some of the most sensitive buildings in this country. | "From these new revelations it looks like no effective action was taken to check who has access to some of the most sensitive buildings in this country. |
| "It looks like the Home Office is still not fit for purpose." | "It looks like the Home Office is still not fit for purpose." |
| 'Employers' responsibility' | |
| Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg said: "Public confidence in the government's handling of immigration will take yet another hammering with this revelation. | Liberal Democrat home affairs spokesman Nick Clegg said: "Public confidence in the government's handling of immigration will take yet another hammering with this revelation. |
| "It is impossible to promote the merits of a fair and effective immigration system as long as the government mixes headline-grabbing populism with serial administrative incompetence." | "It is impossible to promote the merits of a fair and effective immigration system as long as the government mixes headline-grabbing populism with serial administrative incompetence." |
| Cabinet Office Minister Ed Miliband said the SIA introduced a new licensing system in July. | |
| "(It) instituted the kind of checks we need on people to make sure they can be legally working in this country," he told BBC1's Politics Show. | |
| "Now they are going to check existing employees from outside the European Union where there is a risk of them being employed illegally," he said. | |
| "This is a responsibility on employers. Employers should not be employing people illegally." |