A Turkish-style barber has hit back at plans unveiled by Reform UK to create a so-called “Turkish barber tip line” to report illegal workers, accusing its leaders of scapegoating the industry and warning he is already losing customers as a result of the party’s “unfair” attacks.
The political party’s home office spokesperson Zia Yusuf announced the plan on Thursday, which states police and trading standards would be required to follow up on credible tips, and that rewards could be given on successful prosecutions.
It marks another attack on the sector from Reform UK. Last year, Nigel Farage issued a video on social media in which he described a spread of Turkish barbers as a “racket”, and joked that the shop owners do not pay tax.
On Wednesday, Reform’s Treasury spokesperson Robert Jenrick, who defected from the Tories last year, said “dodgy Turkish barbers” were making high streets look “messy” and pushing out “legitimate businesses”.
This latest move by the party has been met with criticism from inside the sector. Alan Ahmea, 43, who runs Turkish Style Barbers in Keynsham, near Bristol, said the party’s rhetoric was costing his hard-working team business.
He said some customers had been driven away with concerns shared over illegal workers and tax evasion in the industry.
He told The Independent: "It doesn't feel nice to hear this [Reform's "tip line"]. We work hard, do everything legally and pay taxes. We also have got to know many people well in the community. So to hear this, it just feels like another unfair hit on us.
“There are so many Turkish-style barbers. Yes, there might be some people who do dodgy things, but that doesn't mean we all do.
"They [Reform] want to get into power and are trying to get people to support them. They just find something to pick on which will make them more powerful and rich.
"It does impact us. I have had some customers, they now go to other barbers thinking we are dodgy people who are no paying taxes or have legal workers. But those who know us in the community know this is not the case at all."
Mr Ahmae also said the targeting of his sector was also impacting the mental health of him and his workers. He said: "I have a British passport, but it impacts me as coming from another country, supporting my family back home. We all [workers] have family back home and it is not great to not always be with them. This makes it worse and impacts your mental health."
Reform UK’s new policy, which comes alongside wider measures to crack down on illegal employment practices, has also been slammed by Labour, which said it was using the announcement to “distract the public” from Reform’s continued financial scandals.
There are already other avenues to report illegal working, such as an immigration enforcement hotline, or contacting Crimestoppers or council trading standards teams.
Labour party chair Bridget Phillipson said: “This is Reform’s latest desperate attempt to deflect attention from the ever-growing catalogue of scandals engulfing Nigel Farage and his party.
She added: “Rather than trying to distract the public, Farage needs to come clean and explain why he did not declare his secret £5million ‘gift’ from a crypto billionaire. The public deserve better than a party who clearly think the rules don’t apply to them.”
Mr Yusuf said a Reform government would establish a central prosecution fund, managed by the Home Office to enforce action, but it is unclear how the tip line itself would be set up or operated.
Tips that lead to successful enforcement action or prosecutions will receive a direct financial reward funded from a share of the penalties recovered, Mr Yusuf said. But the details of such rewards remain unclear, with details of the exact amount to be laid out in legislation.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, Mr Yusuf accused Labour and the Conservatives of having “effectively decriminalised illegal working in the United Kingdom”.
“Well, under a Reform government, this betrayal ends,” he said. “We will introduce the toughest penalties in the world for those who employ and profit from illegal mining, will restore order to our high street, protect the integrity of our border, and return fairness to the British economy.”
Under the plans announced on Wednesday, employers would be held responsible, be fined 10 per cent of their global revenues, and potentially face jail sentences, even if they were unaware of the worker’s immigration status.
Under current legislation, businesses employing someone who does not have the right to work without carrying out the correct checks face fines of up to £60,000 for each illegal worker, and Reform’s announcement comes after a government crackdown on illegal working in the delivery sector.
Earlier this year, security minister Dan Jarvis urged Britons to report “dodgy barbers” to the police if they were suspicious.
“Where people see activity that they think is suspicious, that absolutely should be reported,” he said. “In the end, people will have to make a judgment about where they want to get their hair cut.”
Mr Yusuf’s other announcements include making it illegal to use a vehicle for business purposes without holding a full British licence.
The measure would exclude lorry drivers delivering to the UK from other countries, he said.
Responding to the announcement, which has been dubbed the ‘Deliveroo law’, a Deliveroo spokesperson said: “Illegal working should absolutely be addressed, and that’s why we’ve led the industry in cracking down on the sophisticated, organised criminals who attempt to abuse our platform.
“We run right to work checks on all riders, conduct multiple daily identity checks and use cutting-edge fraud-detection technology, and we’d encourage other industries affected by illegal working to do the same.”
The Home Office announced in July it had arrested 10 Evri workers who were on immigration bail, subject to strict conditions, while further inquiries took place.
A Home Office spokesperson said it was closing loopholes by “extending right to work checks to the gig economy and delivery sector”
“Employers who break the law face severe consequences, including fines of up to £60,000 per illegal worker, business closures, licence revocations and prison sentences of up to five years,” they said.
Figures published in January showed visits and arrests linked to illegal working had reached their highest levels since current records began in 2019.
Some 12,791 visits took place in 2025, up 57 per cent from 8,122 in the previous year, to businesses including nail bars, car washes, barbers and takeaway shops.
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