Rogue traders had better watch out - a series of 'scambuster' initiatives are being launched to catch them.

Trading standards authorities in the South and East are sharing a £1.8 million Government hand-out to tackle the con-artists. Illegal door-to-door sellers, counterfeiters, cowboy builders and unqualified TV repairers are topping the target list.

Consumer Minister Gerry Sutcliffe said:

"I want to see bogus sellers, who knock on the doors of some of the most vulnerable people in our neighbourhoods put out of business. These scambuster pilots mean that trading standards officers will be able to crack down on unscrupulous traders and businesses and stamp out their kind of fraudulent and malicious practices.

"This money will allow teams of investigators to focus on the larger scale scams that operate across local authority boundaries and work to take action against the worst kinds of traders."