Children in Britain watch more TV and are using computers more than anywhere else in Europe, according to a book published yesterday.

The book, Children and their Changing Media Environment edited by Sonia Livingstone and Moira Bovill, follows their UK research last year, produced in association with the Broadcasting Standards Commission.

The researcher teams studies viewing habits of 15,000 young people aged 6-17 in the UK, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.

It found that British children spend much more time watching TV and much less time reading or playing outdoors than their European counterparts.

Across Europe young people watching on average of two hours of TV a day but British children spend on average five hours per day using media. And compared with others in Europe, they are the most likely to say that there is not enough for someone their age to do in the area where they live.

The Netherlands and the Nordic countries were found to have most ICT at home and in school. The was UK to be ahead in terms of PC use in school, but behind in home PC access.

Professor Livingstone said: "This is the first time young people across Europe have been surveyed for their use of new media.

"What is striking is that, despite all the hype, new forms of media are mainly supplementing, not replacing, more familiar media.

She added: "Here in the UK we need to think about why, compared with those in other European countries, British children are making the greatest use of screen media while thinking books are boring and being most dissatisfied with outdoor leisure opportunities available to them."