A restaurant has been saved from closure – despite being caught employing illegal immigrants.

Police called for the Jarna restaurant in New Milton to be stripped of its licence after immigration officers raided the premises and found six men working there illegally.

But an application was subsequently made to transfer the licence from Anwar Hussain to the restaurant’s new owner, Shahed Miah.

Yesterday the district council’s licensing sub-committee approved the transfer, saying Mr Hussain would have no further involvement in the running of thebusiness.

Had the application been refused the restaurant would have been banned from selling alcohol, making it financially unviable.

As reported in the Daily Echo the Home Office swooped on the premises on August 16 and arrested three Bangladeshi men aged 26, 28 and 29. Two of them had outstayed their visas and the third was a failed asylum seeker.

Another three men aged 29, 45 and 60 were found to have no permission to work in Britain and were escorted from the premises.

But the sub-committee heard that the ownership of the business subsequently passed from Mr Hussain to Mr Miah.

Mr Miah was asked if he could give councillors an assurance that he would do nothing illegal and replied: “One hundred per cent I can.

“I would be stupid if I did. When I employ people I make sure they are legal.”

His solicitor, Richard Griffiths, told the sub-committee: “If he didn’t come over to you as an honest young man who is determined to make a serious go of the business I would be very surprised.

“There’s not a shred of evidence that he’s going to run these premises anything other than lawfully and legally.”

Police said the transfer request was a submitted as a direct result of the raid and claimed that licensing objectives relating to crime and disorder would “continue to be undermined” if the application were granted.

After retiring for one-a-half-hours councillors said Mr Hussain had failed to carry out proper checks when vetting his employees.

However, they acknowledged that the lease had since been transferred to Mr Miah and accepted that Mr Hussain would have no further involvement in the running of the business.

During the hearing it emerged that Mr Hussain had lodged an appeal against a civil penalty notice issued by the Home Office following the raid.