Under-age drinkers will be the target of a new police crackdown in the run-up to Christmas.

Inspector Chris May, from Winchester's North Walls station, announced this week that officers would be carrying out random spot checks on city centre off-licences.

The move has been welcomed by one store, which is said to be plagued by under 18s desperate for alcohol.

Eliza Walker, assistant manager at Wine Rack, in Winchester High Street, says that teenagers often hang around outside the shop and can become violent when staff refuse to serve them.

"It's especially bad on Friday and Saturday nights. We get a lot of under-age people in then. We don't serve them, but they can cause a lot of problems. They sometimes get really aggressive. Only this week, a girl ripped down a poster in the shop," said Eliza.

"If the police can get them out of our hair, it's definitely a good idea."

Inspector May warned people to be aware of the problem, and urged shoppers not to give in to persuasive youngsters asking them to buy alcohol.

"Surprisingly, you will find a lot of adults prepared to buy drinks for young people hovering around outside," he said.

"If you're going into an off-licence and you're approached by someone clearly under-age, don't buy anything for them. You might think it's Christmas and it's harmless, but the harm is that they're under-age."