The owner of three Berkshire curry houses, which lost their booze licences after illegal workers were found at the premises, has apologised for "naive mistakes".

Jamshed Miah lost licences to sell alcohol at his ‘Miah’s’ restaurants in Reading, West Berkshire and Wokingham, after 12 illegal workers were found.

Miah’s are currently appealing the revocation of the licences and can continue to sell alcohol until their appeal is heard.

Mr Miah said: “We sincerely apologise for our naive mistakes which have led to the situation that we now find ourselves in.

“We would ask that our previous 38-year clear record is taken into consideration, and that our naivety isn’t considered to be as intentional as it has been made out to be in some instances.

“We would like to ensure all customers that we have now rectified these errors and are now meeting all licensing objectives.

Mr Miah said he had wrongly believed that the restaurant could employ staff on a trial basis for up to 20 hours whilst legal documentation was produced.

Home Office immigration enforcement found five immigration offenders at the Reading restaurant, Miah’s Garden of Gulab, on May 13.

Three illegal workers were then found at the Pangbourne, West Berkshire, restaurant in June, while a visit of the Spencer’s Wood, Wokingham, restaurant in early August found a further four.

Mr Miah lost the licence to sell alcohol at each of the restaurants in separate licensing hearings in late October and early November.

Councillor Lindsay Ferris said the Wokingham hearing was “probably one of the most clear cut cases we have had”.

Visits were conducted following a referral from the Slough Modern Slavery Sub Group but officers found no substantial evidence of any potential victims of modern slavery.

Mr Miah added: “The safety of our workforce is not in question, and staff well-being remains as one of the highest priorities of our business.”

Hearings took place at West Berkshire Council and Wokingham Borough Council on October 23 and 25, with the final licence lost at RBC on November 1.

Mr Miah faces a potential total fine of £220,000 from the Home Office for the 12 illegal workers found.

At the Reading hearing, Thames Valley Police officer Simon Wheeler said: “One time we could say is bad luck.

"Three times is impossible to believe. This is a serious lack of regard for doing the right thing."