WILL it be Secret Message Barbie or that Britney Spears CD? Thunderbirds Tracey Island or a Gameboy Color?

Whatever gifts parents buy for their children this Christmas, they should think more about which country they buy them in than the present they want to get, say the experts.

Market research published yesterday revealed British mums and dads could pay 91 per cent more than their American counterparts for certain presents.

The study, conducted by the Consumers' Association, has sparked a Cheaper Brands campaign to drive down prices in this country - a move backed by Tesco, Asda and the Parallel Trade Association.

A comparison of five items bought in London, Europe and America showed prices were 14 per cent higher here than on the Continent, and 23 per cent more than in shops across the Atlantic. The Consumers' Association is blaming Euro laws for bashing British pockets.

The Trade Mark Directive has given brand owners control over the price of their goods, allows them to decide who can sell the product and lets them stop traders buying their goods from outside the EU.

Sheila McKechnie, director of the Consumers' Association, said: "This European law is a smokescreen for price fixing, as it is allowing brand owners to charge consumers high prices in the UK and the rest of Europe.

"The Consumers' Association's message to the European Commission is: come on, change this law and give us all a cheaper Christmas."

The price difference is unlikely to stop parents rushing out to buy those "must have" toys for this year.

According to the British Association of Toy Retailers (BATR) this year is a veritable shopping aisle of choice.

BATR chairman, Gary Grant, said: "This could be a 'dog-eat-dog' Christmas. There are a number of electronic hounds all wagging their tails to attract top sales.

"But it's one of those years where there is a wide range of really innovative toys and games, which means the front runners could be challenged."

Topping the must-have list is a reinvented old faithful - the scooter. Prices range from £50 to £120, and girls have the techno-rich, animated Amazing Ally doll which can be bought for about £65.

But the real hard-to-find favourite is looking likely to be Thunderbirds Tracey Island, which, despite being released for the third year in succession, will be scarce in the shops come Christmas. Only 20,000 will be on sale in this country before then.