Reform UK has pledged to jail company bosses found hiring illegal workers under a proposed “Deliveroo law,” announced at a London press conference on Thursday. The party's home affairs spokesman, Zia Yusuf, outlined plans to crack down on illegal working, particularly in the food delivery sector, which he linked to high youth unemployment.
Crackdown on illegal working
Under the plans, CEOs and directors of firms breaking immigration laws would face jail time, and companies would be fined 10% of their global revenues. Mr Yusuf claimed enforcement data showed 40% of people in the food delivery industry could be working without proper documentation, though evidence on exact numbers is sparse. A Home Office operation in April 2023 found 42% of riders stopped over a six-day period lacked proper paperwork.
Standing up for British workers
Mr Yusuf said: "There are over one million 16 to 24-year-old Brits who are out of work, not in education nor training. They are competing for entry-level jobs with record numbers of illegal workers. It's not fair. Corporate CEOs have been making a fortune by hiring illegal workers and undermining British youngsters. Reform will jail them and stop illegal working for good - we will stand up for British workers."
He added: "We will establish the toughest penalties anywhere in the world to end illegal working and stand up for British workers."
Immigration plans and tech companies
The announcement follows the party's earlier pledge to use the Navy to return small boats to France. Mr Yusuf said under Reform's immigration plans "well north of a million people" would be deported from Britain. However, he emphasised he still wanted tech companies like Deliveroo to set up in the UK, stating: "We want people creating jobs in this country... However, there is a bright red line on everything I've just said, which is hiring illegal migrants, and in some cases at industrial scale."
He criticised Deliveroo, saying: "I want to reiterate to you the official data from an enforcement action found north of 40 per cent of them were found to be working illegally... I mean, Deliveroo pictures itself as a technology company. It's more than capable of stopping it. The fact of the matter is, as I said in my speech, for a lot of these companies, and it isn't just Deliveroo, a lot of these companies, they see whatever fines they may get, whatever attention, negative attention they might get for doing it, as a minor inconvenience and a small cost of doing business."
Home Office fines and industry response
The Home Office has said it is already increasing penalties for companies hiring illegal workers. Between October 1 and December 31 2025, 61 London businesses were fined, including Lahore One Restaurant on Commercial Road, Basak Bakery in Haringey, and Antep Tas Firin in Enfield, each fined £135,000.
Migrants living in asylum hotels are illegally working as fast-food delivery riders within hours of arriving, it was claimed last year. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said there is "clear evidence" asylum seekers are taking jobs with companies such as Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats, after visiting a central London hotel.
A Deliveroo spokesman said: "Illegal working should absolutely be addressed, and that's why we've led the industry in cracking down on the sophisticated, organised criminals who attempt to abuse our platform. We run Right to Work checks on all riders, conduct multiple daily identity checks and use cutting-edge fraud-detection technology, and we'd encourage other industries affected by illegal working to do the same."
