A TOY supplier was fined £5,000 after coloured pencils containing excessive lead levels were found on sale in two shops.

In the worst case, one grey pencil was found to contain more than ten times the permitted quantity of lead, Sunderland magistrates were told.

Leeds firm Woolbro (Distributors) Limited was brought before the court following an investigation by Sunderland City Council's trading standards department.

Officers bought four different sets of coloured pencils from the Superpound store, in Waterloo Place, and Super£plus, in the Market Square, both in Sunderland.

They were tested for toxic metals to see if they complied with the Toy Safety Regulations of 1995, which lays down the maximum safe levels of heavy metals in toys.

All four packs, imported from China by Woolbro, contained pencils which had excessive quantities of lead in their cores.

Woolbro admitted four offences of selling coloured pencils containing excessive heavy metals.

The company was fined £1,250 on each charge and was ordered to pay court costs of £532.