The Home Office has launched an enforcement campaign to "root out" illegal working in the construction industry.

'Operation Magnify' involves enforcement officers carrying out operations which target businesses in the sector which employ and exploit illegal migrant workers.

Immigration Minister James Brokenshire hosted a meeting with industry leaders about plans to end illegal working in the sector.

Representatives included those from construction companies working across the public and commercial sectors and industry bodies including the Construction Industry Council, the Chartered Institute of Building and Build UK.

"Coming together with key employers and influencers in the construction industry is a chance for us to engage with those who are keen to maintain the integrity of the sector," Mr Brokenshire said.

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"Illegal working undermines legitimate employers, harms the reputation of the industry, drives down wages and denies employment to hard-working UK citizens and people who are working in the UK legally.

"Employers within the construction industry have a critical role to play in helping to combat this by ensuring they carry out the straightforward 'Right to Work' checks on potential employees that prevent illegal working in the UK."

The government has already taken action to make 'Right to Work' checks much easier for legitimate employers to carry out, including reducing the frequency of checks and the range of documents needed.

In the last Parliament, the government doubled the maximum civil penalty for non-compliant employers to £20,000 for each illegal worker employed.

New measures included in the Immigration Bill currently progressing through Parliament will make it easier to prosecute employers using illegal labour, increase the maximum prison sentence for doing so to five years and also close down businesses which continue to breach regulations.

(LM)