Takeaway raided

Published 30 Jun 2010 15:00

A Clydebank takeaway has been raided by immigration police who allegedly discovered three illegal workers.

After a tip off that the New Parkhall Chinese carry-out was allegedly employing illegal migrants, the UK Border Agency swooped just after 5pm on Friday.

Two Malaysian men and a Chinese woman were removed from the premises and steps will now be taken to deport them from the UK "as soon as possible".

The takeaway was closed for about two hours while immigration officials made their checks, but once they had left the New Parkhall opened again for business.

However, its owners could now face a fine of up to £30,000 unless they can prove they made the necessary checks to establish whether or not the workers were legitimate residents.

Phil Taylor, regional director of the UK Border Agency in Scotland and Northern Ireland, says employing illegal workers undermines law-abiding businesses and it will not be tolerated.

He said: "If people want to work in the UK, there are ways they can come here legitimately.

"If they decide to ignore immigration laws, we will find them and look to remove them from the country.

"Any employer who takes on a foreign national without permission to work in the UK is breaking the law and faces a big fine."

Residents nearby said the raid on Friday remained fairly low key.

One neighbour said: "I saw some vans parked out the street but I didn't immediately think it was police because they were unmarked.

"I think they wanted to keep it low key so that the takeaway staff didn't get wind of what was going on."

The New Parkhall declined the opportunity to comment.

Tweet

This article appeared in Clydebank Post 30 Jun 10

Follow @clydebankpost

Return to the main index, get more from this section or browse our News archives.