Shopkeepers in Bedfordshire are signing up to a new campaign to stop the sale of alcohol and cigarettes to under-age buyers.

The Traders' Charter is being introduced after an undercover operation found nearly nine out of 10 retailers approached were breaking the law and selling goods illegally to youngsters.

The legal age for buying alcohol is 18 and hidden cameras were used to film 16-year-olds buying alcohol unchallenged.

Trading standards spokesman Carl Davies said: "We were finding not just beer being sold to under-age teenagers but also strong spirits and butane were being sold - and we know from statistics nationally that two people a week die from butane abuse."

The Traders' Charter is being piloted in Leighton Buzzard.

Every time someone under-age asks for a restricted product, the retailer records the details.

Trading standards officials hope every retailer in the county will have signed up to the charter by early next year.

They also warn anyone found selling age-restricted products could face prison.