Ice cream vendors fear being forced off the streets following a Brighton man's High Court defeat.

Sean Kempin, 43, who owns seven vans in Brighton and Hove, asked two judges two rule that his drivers should be recognised as "roundsmen", like milkmen, and therefore exempt from street trading licence fees.

In a blow to ice cream vendors round the country, Lord Justice Latham, sitting with Mr Justice Potts, ruled in the test case that the drivers could not in law be defined as roundsmen.

The judges dismissed an appeal by Mr Kempin against a conviction by Brighton Magistrates' Court last year for selling his ice cream without obtaining a street traders' licence.

Later Mr Kempin accused Labour-run Brighton and Hove Council of imposing a "stealth tax" on his business - and warned that children would be the main victims.

Mr Kempin said: "The Brighton and Hove Labour Party will be remembered by the children of this country for the eventual death of the traditional ice cream van."

His lawyer Lorraine Smith said: "Many traditional ice cream van operators could soon be forced to go out of business following today's decision.

"If boroughs up and down the country follow the example of Brighton and Hove Council, which today won the right to categorise ice cream roundsmen as street traders, many will find the additional charges they will be required to pay crippling.

"It's a real tragedy. My client and hundreds like him will have to pay a substantial part of their earnings to their local council and get absolutely nothing in return."