STREET-CORNER drink dealers who supply alcohol to youngsters are being targeted as part of a new crackdown on teeny booze binges.

And off-licence workers across East Lancashire have been warned that they too could face prosecution if they sell alcohol to people known locally to be flogging it on.

Children as young as 10 and 11 have been caught with super-strength beer and powerful alcopops which is often bought locally via an adult.

The adult will buy cans of strong alcohol for as little as 99p a can, but then sell it to youngsters for up to £3.

Sergeant Ian Hanson, from Blackburn Police, said: "Not only do we have the power to confiscate and throw away beer which youngsters are in possession of, but also from people who we believe are supplying alcohol.

"Teenage drinking can be a problem which then causes juvenile nuisance issues for people living in areas affected.

"They sell the beer on for two or three times the amount that they paid for it.

"It's money they know youngsters sometimes have and it doesn't take a lot for them to become drunk and start to cause all sorts of problems."

Officers are currently touring known hotspots looking out for people hanging around with large quantities of alcohol.

They seized alcohol off two young men outside Darwen Cemetery in Bolton Road last Friday night after suspicions were aroused they were selling it on.

Sgt Hanson added: "As part of the crackdown we will also be using youngsters to see if they can buy alcohol from the shops.

"Obviously, we will prosecute if they do sell to people who look and are under age, but we also have the power to prosecute if they are knowingly selling alcohol to people who are then selling it on."

Teams of officers are also blitzing known hotspot areas for teenage drinking and making a point of throwing the drink down drains in front of the youngsters before taking them home.

Earlier this month, the Lancashire Evening Telegraph revealed how test-shops by Lancashire County Council's trading standards department had resulted in 13 year olds being able to buy alcohol in one out of every three shops tested.

The Christmas crackdown on shopkeepers who serve under-18s followed a major "test purchasing" operation which revealed East Lancashire to be one of the easiest places in the county for children to buy alcohol.

And shopkeepers were warned they could face a maximum £5,000 fine or the loss of their licence to sell alcohol if they are caught out.

A number of prosecutions followed the action and regular mystery shoppers are now being used across the area in the run up to Christmas to stamp out the alarming trend.

The British Retail Consortium, which represents shop keepers, said that serving someone who was under age could be an honest mistake and said it was behind the first ever national proof of age card in a bid to stamp out the problem. But police and trading standards officers want to reverse the absence of check-ups in the past which has allowed shopkeepers to become complacent.