A member of the biggest internet paedophile ring which who today faces a jail sentence has given a sickening insight into his world in a documentary.

David Hines showed no remorse as he spoke of trading thousands of degrading images on the BBC1 Panorama programme last night.

The 30-year-old, from Bognor, this morning faced sentencing at Kingston Crown Court together with six other British members of the so-called "Wonderland Club", including computer consultant Ian Baldock, 31, from St Leonards.

The international ring of 180 perverts swapped thousands of photos of children, including babies, over the internet and even watched abuse carried out on-line.

Jobless Hines denied children suffered to create the images.

He says: "We just didn't see it as abuse. We saw it as there were some children involved in relationships."

Challenged on the idea that the idea children could want sex is abhorrent, he replies: "Not to us."

The Britons were among 107 arrested in a global police operation spanning three continents to smash the underground ring.

A staggering 750,000 pictures were seized by police, as well as a library of 1,800 computerised videos depicting children suffering sexual abuse.

Hines told programme makers: "It's great the net ... new pictures to trade ... it's wonderful. It draws you in, it sucks you in.

"I had people I could talk to. I had people I could trade images with as well.

"I'd never had too many friends. I had friends all over the world. People would message me who I didn't know ... and they would say 'trade?' and that was it."

The entry fee for new members was to provide 10,000 new indecent pictures, ranging from teenagers to babies just three months-old, for the consumption of 180 other perverts.

One man from Italy is believed to have owned as many as 180,000 images.

Those facing sentence at Kingston Crown Court, Surrey, this morning include computer consultant Antoni Skinner, 36, from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire; and Gavin Seagers, 29, a Sea Cadets youth leader from Dartford, Kent.

Ahmet Ali, 30, a taxi driver, from Tulse Hill, south London; Frederick Stephens, 46, also a taxi driver, from Hayes, west London; and unemployed Andrew Barlow, 25, from Bletchley, Milton Keynes, Bucks, will also be sentenced.

All have admitted conspiring to distribute indecent images of children.

Under present law they face a maximum term of only three years and could be free within 18 months.

A Bill going through Parliament would increase the maximum sentence to ten years.

An eighth man, Gary Salt - believed to have been the club chairman - is serving 12 years after being convicted in Manchester of rape.

Computer consultant David Chaiken, from Maidenhead, Berks, was jailed for nine months for possession and distribution of indecent images of children at Reading Crown Court in June 1999.

The tenth member, jobless Steven Ellis, 40, from Norwich, committed suicide after his arrest.