Chippie owner given ‘devastating’ £40,000 fine by Home office for allegedly illegal hire

Surrey chip shop staff left terrified' by immigration raid as ministers called on to lower penalties for small businesses

A fish and chip shop owner has been handed a devastating" 40,000 fine by the Home Office after hiring a man who had allegedly forged his identity, as ministers face calls to reduce the size of such penalties for small businesses amid a surge in enforcement.

In March, Home Office immigration officers stormed Big Fry Fish & Chips in Egham, Surrey, in a raid that left staff terrified". Officers took away a man, who was employed by the shop, on the alleged grounds that he did not have to right to work in the UK.