Scores of potentially dangerous children's jackets have been seized from York's new designer outlet centre.

Almost a hundred garments with potentially lethal hood cords that could accidentally strangle a child, were removed by trading standards officers from an unnamed outlet at the Fulford complex.

The coats bear the brand names NAFNAF, Timberland, DKNY and Chevignon, said Colin Rumford, head of trading standards for City of York Council.

He said that such hood cords had been banned from children's coats in Britain for more than two decades, since there had been a number of fatal accidents in which children had become entangled with the cords.

Regulations prohibited the sale of any garment with a hood cord when the chest size was less than 44cms, he said.

"I am very concerned that dangerous clothing that was outlawed in 1976 has found its way back into the market place," he said.

"I want to alert parents to the potential hazard that this clothing represents: this is particularly the case when this style of clothing is made to be attractive to children.

"I will be considering a report on the retailer involved and am asking officers to carry out more inspections to make sure that these items are not more widely available."

He said that any parents who had bought a children's garment with a hood cord could seek advice from the trading standards department, by calling 01904 551562.

The designer outlets centre, which opened last month, features dozens of outlets selling end-of-season designer gear at greatly discounted prices. More than a million people will have visited the complex, just off the A19/A64 junction, by Christmas.

A spokesman for McArthurGlen, owners of the centre, said today that they would be investigating the matter.

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