PROSECUTIONS for selling cigarettes to children have reached a three-year high as a result of visits by youngsters working undercover.
Seven traders in Sunderland were caught selling cigarettes to children posing as smokers after trading standards officers targeted 33 shops.
In the past two years, there had only been two prosecutions after 40 visits. The drive against the illegal sales was launched in 1997, when 12 prosecutions resulted from 54 visits.
The success of Sunderland City Council's operations comes in the wake of claims that the tobacco industry is trying to encourage more teenagers to smoke.
A report by the Cancer Research Campaign and Action on Smoking and Health accused companies of publicly opposing teenage smoking while still marketing cigarettes to attract children.
Trading standards officers on Wearside use unpaid young volunteers to make test purchases. They are monitored while trying to buy cigarettes
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article