1,000 illegal immigrants held after random swoops on Tube

More than 1,000 illegal immigrants have been arrested after random searches of Tube passengers and pedestrians, Home Office figures revealed today.

Police and immigration service officers have staged regular swoops in London, with 235 operations in 15 months.

The trawls were ordered by ministers in an attempt to step up the return of failed asylum seekers and illegal migrants to their home countries.

Last month the Evening Standard revealed that immigration officers were questioning some Tube travellers because they sounded "foreign". They were asking them to produce their papers to prove their right to British residence, using powers the police are banned from employing.

The arrests came as last month's asylum figures showed the number of failed asylum seekers removed from Britain fell by 18 per cent compared to the same period in 2003. The spot checks have been held in areas with high crime rates with the aim of unmasking rejected asylum seekers who have not left the country.

Figures obtained by The Guardian newspaper show that those arrested included 717 failed asylum seekers - although thousands more have been stopped and questioned.

The tactics have caused controversy, however, with fears they could fan tensions between young Asians and East Europeans and the police.