THE leader of Newport council has criticised city police for warning people about the dangers of BB guns.

Sir Harry Jones (pictured) spoke out following an article in Saturday's Argus, where police warned about the potential dangers of the toy guns.

In the article police raised concerns about the fact the guns could injure people, and also that they closely resemble real weapons.

Thousands of children across Gwent own BB guns, which are sold in shops and at markets.

But Sir Harry claimed he was not aware of the new toy craze. And at a full council meeting this week, he said: "I didn't know these guns existed before I read the Argus. The people who make them must have been delighted, and I'm sure sales went up immediately as a consequence."

PC Eddie Evans, who highlighted the problem, said: "We have had several calls from people with concerns about these guns, including managers of shops and shopping areas.

"Children can be injured, BB guns are quite powerful. We are concerned, as are the trading standards officers, about the sale of these so- called toys. "We hope that parents will now think twice about buying these guns for their children. "We were made aware of the problem and felt we should pass on our concerns to the public."

At the same meeting, councillors were urged not to respond to Argus deadlines when approached for a comment about a story.

The call to members came from Councillor Bob Bright, who hit out at the Argus, criticising in particular our coverage of the saga of the proposed building of a school on a former waste tip.

Speaking about a story on July 20, that 40 tonnes of cancer-causing material had been removed from the Glebelands site - where it is planned to build a replacement for Durham Road Schools - he said: "I am criticising the journalists and the politicians."

He called comments made in the story by AMs about the difficulty getting hold of the report on what was removed "absolute garbage" and said the council had been "more than open".

Councillor Bright also accused the Argus of "trying to sell more papers" by using the headline School Site In Cancer Shock.