Council queries £45k fine for 'employing illegal worker'

Council bosses said they were left surprised after being fined near £45,000 after the Home Office said the authority had been "employing an illegal worker".

Cheshire West and Chester Council were included in a list of penalised organisations reportedly hiring staff with no right to work in the UK - receiving penalties as a result.

In a statement, a council spokesperson said: "We have no knowledge or record of illegal workers and we are currently in the process of contacting the Home Office."

The Home Office said that following a routine data share with HMRC, a civil penalty of £45,000 was issued to the council on 10 November last year.

A spokesperson said: "Illegal working undermines honest employers, undercuts local wages, and fuels organised immigration crime. This government will not stand for it".

The statement said the government had increased immigration enforcement action to the "highest level in British history", delivering increases in both arrests and raids for organisations suspected of facilitating illegal work.

Cheshire West and Chester Council said they were now contacting the Home Office for greater clarification regarding the individual at the centre of the alleged offence, the Local Democracy Reporting Service said.

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