Yup, he wants to be employed in the building industry, doesn't say what as or what field his experience is in but thats what he's been doing back home, straight after his cup of coffee with Mr Vaz he was going to a car wash that had offered him employment and thence would try and find employment in the building trade, I do hope that Mr Vaz made a note of the address of the car wash so that HMRC could follow up and make sure that the correct tax/NIS was being deducted.

All of which is a very different situation to that which would face any 17 or 18 year old British youth with an inkling to be employed in one of the building trades, for the recognised path into "proper" employment on building sites is to undergo an apprenticeship, training at college, usually full time these days, no time for working in car washes while looking for builders who aren't too fussy about your previous employment experience in their trade, presumably he doesn't do something that needs certification like an electrician, plumber, heating engineer, structural engineer, brickie, joiner etc etc etc.

Again its a different approach and its no good saying to your 17 year old lad "if you want to work in the building trade then get out (on your Tebbit bike) and go find a few weeks work here and there in another part of the country" because that is not any way to organise your life over anything other than a very short period of time.

As mentioned, willing to work for less money or under worse conditions.
Recruitment agencies are, in some cases at least, actively targeting and recruiting migrant workers.
They're often more willing to take very short term or low to no guaranteed hours work because unlike the "British" people they aren't on certain benefits which can be affected and can lead to problems by working irregular hours.
Often more flexible on location and hours as they often don't have kids.
Plus they often only work for short periods say 3/4 months and then go home so, unlike the British people, come off the unemployment figures.

Could an English person not do his job? Or does he have a superior work ethic that nobody in England can match?

Think it was in the Mail too.

Given it is now January it is very unlikely that he will earn enough by the end of the tax year to warrant paying any tax?

Given that he's working in a car wash its very unlikely that he'll appear on anyones payroll records anyway, one of the principle requirements of working in a car wash is not wringing out leathers but being the first one over the back wall and off like a hare when HMRC come calling.

No that's only the illegals - he will not be one of them.

Have you ever been given a receipt at a hand car wash ?

We had an account with one at work so yes we used to get proper bills.

You were their "Look guv we got proper accounts an everyting" diversion technique then.

Like any business where cash is involved there are opportunities for evasion/avoidance a small perk for the high levels of risk.

High levels of risk?

Taking cash from people before you wash their car in a former petrol station that the owner cannot lease out to anyone else other than another petrol retailer who won't touch it with a bargepole and for which he doesn't have the huge finance needed to dig up the tanks and convert it back into a brownfield site which is then of low development value - that sort of high risk ?

Outlay is low rent (you've got the owner over a barrel), your water rates, some buckets, sponges and wash leathers, an old wringer from a junk shop and one of those advertising things that you blow air into and a 20 foot high balloon man jumps around in the breeze (they can be rented and if you're lucky you'll have done a runner before they come for the next months installment) - find yourself a handful of cash-in-hand Latvians and plot your route over the back fence when HMRC arrive - sorted.