The youngest driver found drink-driving in Wiltshire was 14, new figures have revealed.

Police forces nationwide were asked under a Freedom of Information Act request by in-car camera provider Nextbase to provide figures for arrests of underage drivers from 2008-13.

In Wiltshire there were 53 arrests of under-18s from 2008-13 and 19 arrests of those aged under 16.

The youngest - aged 14 - was arrested in 2010, Wiltshire Police said.

Nationwide the youngest driver arrested was an 11-year-old in the Thames Valley force's area in 2011.

An average of 1,000 under-18s have been convicted of drink-driving per year since 2008, according to the figures. There were an average of five drink-drivers under 18 caught each week since 2008.

Every one of the 43 forces contacted had apprehended under-18 drink-drivers during the six-year period.

The figures showed that the worst English region for underage drink-driving in this period was Greater Manchester where 409 under-18s were arrested.

Other hotspots included Scotland, with 718 drink-drive offenders from 2008 to 2013, Hampshire (276 offenders), Devon and Cornwall (241) and Sussex (160).

Nextbase said the total number of underage drink-drive incidents had fallen year-on-year, but a number of police areas had seen an increase from 2012 to 2013.

These included South Yorkshire (where a number of 14, 15 and 16-year-olds were caught in 2013) Northumbria, Thames Valley, Kent, North Yorkshire, West Mercia, Staffordshire, South Wales, Cheshire and Cambridgeshire.

Merseyside, Devon and Cornwall saw the greatest fall in offending individuals between 2012 and 2013.

Nextbase spokesman Bryn Brooker said: "Uninsured drivers on UK roads pose a huge threat to the safety of the vast majority of responsible motorists and pedestrians.

"These threats come in many forms and today's findings go to show that it's not just those who illegally choose not to buy insurance. Motorists have to be aware of such threats and take appropriate measures to mitigate the risk."

A Department for Transport spokesman said: "Tackling drink-driving is a priority for the Government and we are taking steps to strengthen enforcement, including allowing roadside breath tests to be used as evidence in prosecutions and removing the statutory right of drivers to demand a blood or urine test at the police station which can give them time to sober up.

"We have also made it a requirement for convicted drink-drivers to take medical tests to prove they are no longer alcohol-dependent before being allowed to drive."

The spokesman added: "Under-age driving is illegal and no person under the age of 17 should be driving a car. We have tough laws in place to tackle those caught driving without a licence.

"Drink-driving is a menace that costs lives, and the Government is strengthening the law to help police crack down on this problem."