by Matt Clinch

Staff at the Port of Dover are set for their busiest pre-Christmas day, as 'booze-cruising' Brits stock up on alcohol from the continent.

Traditionally the weekend before Christmas is the busiest of the festive season.

On December 18 last year, 43,000 people and more than 13,000 vehicles passed through the port.

But despite this weekend's surge, figures show fewer people are going abroad for their Christmas shopping.

Passenger numbers for the three months up to Christmas this year are down 23% on 2008.

customs staff may ask questions if quantities exceed:

110 litres of beer
90 litres of wine
10 litres of spirits
20 litres of fortified wines
800 cigarettes
200 cigars
400 cigarillos
1 kg of tobacco

Meanwhile, HM Revenue and Customs has issued advice to anyone heading across the Channel in search of last-minute presents.

Angela Shepherd from HRMC said: "We know many people like to go abroad at this time of year to buy their Christmas gifts.

"But we're keen to remind people how much they can actually bring back with them."

There is currently no limit to the amount of duty and tax-paid alcohol and tobacco that can be brought back from EU countries such as France and Belgium.

However, questions will be asked if goods crossing the UK border exceed certain limits.

Bob Gaiger, a spokesman for the HMRC, said: "Our staff will be trying to establish why the person has gone abroad, how often they go and for what purpose.

"They'll be trying to identify people who are paid money to go into France to buy large quantities of cigarettes and to bring them back for illegal resale."

He added: "The sort of questions our staff could ask include whether they're employed or how much money they're earning.

"If someone is standing in front of an officer with £10,000 of tobacco but they're unemployed, that's obviously going to be very suspicious."