Why ALL of us will have to produce a passport to get a job in Britain

Employers will also risk punishment if they ask job applicants to speak fluent English, according to papers released by the Home Office last night.

The Government said businesses would in future face on-the-spot fines of up £10,000 for every illegal immigrant they are caught employing.

Immigration Minister Liam Byrne said firms must carry out proper checks on new employees to ensure they are legally resident in the UK.

But documents released alongside the crackdown revealed that, in doing so, firms must ensure they do not flout the Race Relations Act.

They must treat all applicants the same, which means British workers must be made to prove they are not an illegal immigrant by, for example, producing a passport.

The papers state: "We recommend that employers obtain a statutory excuse for all potential employees.

"This not only protects the employer from liability for a civil penalty, but also demonstrates consistent, transparent and non- discriminatory recruitment practices."

The Home Office is also warning against employing only people who speak fluent English.

This is despite ministers having a stated policy that, if migrants are to properly integrate, they must learn the language.

Under a section headed "indirect discrimination", the papers say: "It would be discriminatory to ask for a very high standard of English when the job does not require this, or to reject an applicant who has an unfamiliar accent."

The maximum penalty for employing an illegal immigrant is to be raised from £5,000 to £10,000.

Families who have a nanny, or sign a contract with a builder for an extension, will potentially be liable for a fine as they are

technically an employer. Shadow Home Secretary David Davis said: "Last week the Home Office was exposed as allowing 5,000 illegal immigrants to be employed in sensitive security posts.

"Now it is proposing fining the employers of illegal immigrants up to £10,000. Does the Government have an extra £50million to pay for its incompetence?"

Any employer who wants to employ a foreign worker - more than 1.1million have taken jobs since 1997 - must be cleared to act as a "sponsor".

New rules will also apply to colleges who must tell the authorities if an overseas student fails to turn up.

Mr Byrne told MPs that identity cards would become compulsory for foreign workers, giving employers an easy way to check their status.

Until then, they must rely on checking immigration documents which, in the past, have been easily forged.

Employers were last night unhappy with the plan.

Kerry Garcia, senior associate at employment law expert Stevens & Bolton LLP, said: "Employers will have to keep a copy of the employee's passport and contact details and provide such information to the Border and Immigration Agency.

"Employers will need to ensure data is kept secure and is not lost in transit to the Home Office."