SOME 275 immigrants were granted visas to work in a care home that did not exist, the borders inspector has claimed.
A report by the watchdog lays bare Home Office officials’ shocking lack of checks.
The rush to plug staffing shortages with foreign labour also created a system that “invited large numbers of low-skilled workers to this country who are at risk from exploitation”.
Migrants with care visas were found working illegally at a quarter of all homes visited.
The report was written by David Neal, who was sacked by Home Secretary James Cleverly for leaking parts of it last month.
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In it he hits out at “totally inadequate” measures to root out fake claims.
One case saw 1,234 visas granted to a firm with just four employees.
He added: “In just these two examples, up to 1,500 people could have arrived in this country and been encouraged by a risk of hardship or destitution to work outside the conditions of their visa.”
His report says the checks on overseas care workers have been “totally inadequate” and that there is just one compliance officer for every 1,600 employers licensed to hire migrants.
On the 275 sponsorships for the non-existent care home in April 2023, the Home Office said they were “granted in the name of a real care home without its knowledge using false information and evidence”.
The department also said the rush to plug care home shortages happened during the Russian invasion at a time they were under strain.
Mr Cleverly has tightened restrictions on care workers in recent weeks to ensure all providers are registered with the Care Quality Commission.