Partly True: UK government has provided Security Industry Authority (SIA) licenses to illegal immigrants.

By: Varun Kumar
October 2 2020

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A 2007 report shows that some illegal immigrants received SIA licenses, but no news published since then has reported the same. The Security Industry Authority (SIA) was established in 2003 as an independent body reporting to the Home Secretary to regulate the private security industry. SIA's duty includes compulsory licensing of individuals undertaking specific licensable activities within the private security industry. People applying for a license from the SIA are not asked to confirm their right to work in the UK on the application form, but it considered the current form to be sufficient as applicants are asked to specify their nationality and must confirm they have read the licensing criteria, which include a statement that the Security Industry Authority may investigate an applicant's right to work. Despite these provisions, in 2007, a report emerged which showed that "11,000 non-EU nationals who had no right to work in Britain had been licensed in the private security industry," stated the Guardian. The report further established that that 6,653 of the 40,000 people issued with SIA licences to work in the private security industry were believed to be illegal migrants. In a further 4,447 cases immigration officials were not satisfied they had proved they had the right to work in Britain. Following this, Mike Wilson, then-head of the Security Industry Authority, stepped down from his post. On November 22, 2008, the Government announced that it is introducing £10,000 on-the-spot fines for those caught employing people illegally. Since then, no news article have reported on the organisation giving licenses to illegal immigrants in the United Kingdom.