Santa Attempts to Save Kids From Offenders

  Children are doomed to lose part of Christmas fairy tale, as their letters to Santa at the North Pole will be left unanswered as safety measure.

  Letters sent to Santa Claus, North Pole, will now no longer be forwarded to the Alaskan town of the same name.

 Tight new rules were introduced after a registered sex offender was found working on the programme in Maryland last year.

  The US Postal Service now prohibits volunteers from having access to children's surnames and addresses.

  Instead a computerised code system is used, but an Anchorage-based postal spokeswoman said dealing with the tighter restrictions was not feasible in Alaska.

  Volunteers in North Pole used to ensure each child got a reply signed by a Santa elf and bearing the crucial North Pole postmark.

  The town's Mayor, Doug Isaacson, agreed caution was necessary, but he compared the US Postal Service to the Grinch trying to steal Christmas.

   BBC News  has contributed to the report.