by Mike Ribbeck and Chris Thorne

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Paedophile rings are targeting vulnerable boys as young as ten, often those in care, a shocking new report has revealed.

The disturbing findings show that the evil trade in child sex is much more widespread than previously suspected.

Workers who deal directly with young victims say abusers are becoming more sophisticated, using a range of tactics to trap young teenagers - often those in care or from unhappy backgrounds - in a world of vice.

Often the boys who end up being snared will have been booted out of home - or will have fled to escape beatings and abuse. Poverty and prostitution go hand in hand. The boys need shelter and food and are easy prey for sophisticated paedophiles.

The youngsters are lured by the promise of treats such as video games, drink and drugs.

And once they reach a "sell by date" when they are no longer attractive to paedophiles, they are trained to recruit younger boys or act as pimps.

Leading children's charity, Barnardo's, which published the abuse report, is now calling for urgent action. It wants new laws to protect vulnerable children, along with improved services and better research.

Barnardo's development worker Tink Palmer wrote the report - No Son Of Mine - based on the findings of teams working in Bristol, London and Scotland.

She said: "When we first started working with boys abused through prostitution we found it was an almost invisible problem.

"We are now working with 123 boys abused in this way and have strong evidence from the police and childcare professionals that it is a much bigger problem than any of us suspected. We believe our figures are just the tip of the iceberg.

She added: "The young victims are extremely reluctant to come forward to seek help - instead they are blaming themselves for the abuse."

The charity is calling for a shift in attitudes and laws relating to child prostitution. It says the authorities should no longer treat rent boys as criminals, but rather as victims of child abuse.

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