Leading food delivery companies will introduce enhanced security checks on their apps to prevent the market from being abused by illegal workers, following discussions with the government.

Deliveroo, Just Eat and Uber Eats are taking significant steps to protect the British public’s safety by preventing exploitation of account sharing by those looking to work.

Michael Tomlinson, the Minister for Countering Illegal Migration, and Minister Hollinrake, the Minister for Business and Trade, met with representatives from the 3 companies on Monday for productive talks at the Home Office in London.

All 3 firms have now committed to changing their processes to confirm substitute riders have the right to work legally in the UK directly, with Deliveroo the first to roll out a new substitute registration feature, including right to work checks, earlier this month.

The firms will continue to work closely with the government as they roll out their new operating procedures, to help them adapt to any emerging risks.

It follows a visit to Deliveroo’s London headquarters by both ministers last week.

While substitution is a legitimate part of self-employment, a small minority of drivers have taken advantage of the system to avoid completing right to work checks, leading to an increase in operations by Immigration Enforcement to prevent this.

This leaves customers with no way of knowing if the person handing over their food can legally work in the UK. It can also leave delivery firms in the dark about whether their substitute drivers have the right to work in the UK.

The government’s efforts to tackle illegal working, which is one of the biggest pull factors in people coming to the country illegally, are just one part of our abuse of the country’s borders.

Enforcement visits rose by 68% last year and arrests more than doubled, while returns of people with no right to be in the UK also increased by two-thirds.

Last week, the landmark Safety of Rwanda Act became law and an accompanying Treaty was ratified, paving the way for the first flights to take off in the coming weeks.