Keir Starmer said the government will introduce a ‘tough new law’ to combat the ‘poisonous narrative’ of people-smuggling gangs as he opened the Organised Immigration Crime Summit
Keir Starmer has announced new plans to crackdown on vile people-smuggling gangs in a key speech on international crime.
The PM said the government will introduce a “tough new law” that combats the “poisonous narrative” of gangs falsely promising the dream of a better life. It came as he opened the Organised Immigration Crime Summit at Lancaster House in London, bringing together ministers from over 40 countries.
Mr Starmer told them: “The truth is – we can only smash these gangs, once and for all if we work together. Because this evil trade, it exploits the cracks between our institutions. Pits nations against one another. Profits from our inability at the political level to come together.”
He also said he was “angry” about the scale of illegal immigration around the world. Opening the summit, he said: “Illegal migration is a massive driver of global insecurity. It undermines our ability to control who comes here, and that makes people angry.
“It makes me angry, frankly, because it’s unfair on ordinary working people who pay the price – from the cost of hotels, to our public services struggling under the strain. And it’s unfair on the illegal migrants themselves, because these are vulnerable people being ruthlessly exploited by vile gangs.”
Representatives from tech giants, Meta, X and TikTok were also invited to discuss how to tackle online promotion of irregular migration. Here The Mirror looks at the key points from the PM’s speech.
‘Tough new law’ to tackle illegal working
Keir Starmer promised there will be a “tough new law” to tackle illegal working in Britain. The PM said a current loophole in the system allows “dodgy” firms to swerve right-to-work checks for workers in the gig economy and on zero hours.
“While the last government was busy with their Rwanda gimmick, they left the door open for illegal working, especially in short-term or zero-hours roles like in construction, beauty salons and courier services,” Mr Starmer said on Monday.
He said that while most companies carry out the checks “too many dodgy firms have been exploiting a loophole to skip this process: hiring illegal workers, undercutting honest businesses, driving down the wages of ordinary working people”.
And the PM warned the practice is fuelling the “poisonous narrative” of the people-smuggling gangs who “promise the dream of a better life to vulnerable people yet deliver a nightmare of squalid conditions and appalling exploitation”.
How will this work?
For the first time firms hiring people in the ‘gig economy’ will be forced to check they’re eligible to work in the UK under the changes. Currently thousands of employers in the construction, food delivery, beauty salons and courier service industries are not required to check the status of people they hire.
It is expected the government will add a clause to the Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill, which is currently going through Parliament.
READ MORE: Keir Starmer makes major announcement with ‘tough new law’ during key speech
The PM told the summit on Monday those companies who fail to comply will face tough penalties. He said: “Failure to comply will result in fines of up to £60,000. Prison terms of up to 5 years and the potential closure of their business.”
Returns at eight-year high
The PM revealed in his speech that the UK government has removed 24,000 people with “no right to be here” since last year’s General Election. He claimed it would have taken the Tories’ failed Rwanda scheme “80 years to achieve” the same results – despite hundreds of millions spent on it.
Downing Street said this is the highest returns rate in eight years and highlighted a 21% increase in enforced returns since Labour won power in July 2024.
Mr Starmer said: “This is what I mean about not giving in to gimmicks. Just focusing our efforts and resources on the nuts and bolts of removing people. Getting the asylum system working properly. That’s how we’ve delivered the highest returns rate for eight years and the four biggest return flights ever.”
Smuggling gangs should be treated in same way as terrorists
Addressing representatives from over 40 countries at the international crime summit, Mr Starmer urged them to go further in tackling smuggling gangs. He said they should work together in the same way they would to combat terrorists.
The PM added: “We’ve got to bring to bear all the powers we have at our disposal in much the same way that we do against terrorism. Now, before I was a politician, I was the Director of Public Prosecution in England and Wales, and we worked across borders, throughout Europe and beyond Europe to foil numerous plots, saving thousands of lives.
“In the process, we prevented planes from being blown up across the Atlantic and brought the perpetrators to justice. So I believe we should treat organised immigration crime in exactly the same way.”
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