Shocking statistics reveal that a record number of Border Force officials were penalised for corruption, and 18 of them were fired.

Last year, several hundred Home Office employees who worked in immigration enforcement and VIP visa services lost their jobs, and about fifty-five officers were suspended.

Because of employee discontent with salary and working conditions last year, it was believed that the force in charge of immigration and customs controls was more susceptible to corruption.David Neal, the chief inspector of borders and immigration, urged Border Force chiefs to address this as it could be a “breeding ground for insider risk to grow and become insider acts”. He said: “Border Force needs to be equipped for success. On the evidence of this inspection, it does not appear to be as well-equipped as it could or ought to be, which risks wider reputational consequence.”

In April, Border Force officer Kevin Smith, 38, who worked in Portsmouth, was jailed for two years by Kingston crown court after admitting misconduct in a public office. He let through a car from France carrying 15kg of MDMA worth £400,000 and was later found to have a relationship with one of the smugglers.

The National Crime Agency was informed that 44-year-old Gareth Glynn Davies, a Border Force field intelligence officer at Folkestone, might be involved in drug supply, thus the agency opened an investigation into him. He was given a five-year and eleven-month term in April after pleading guilty to two charges of narcotics delivery.

The Home Office stated that it holds Border Force to "the highest standards" and that "unacceptable behaviour is found and rooted out."