Over half of Britain's adults blame parents for underage drinking.
A new consumer poll by the Association of Convenience Stores revealed that 54% believe parents should take the greatest responsibility for the problem of underage drinking.
Only 9% believed that shops and supermarkets were to blame and 26% pointed the finger at the police.
The poll also revealed that 36% believe their community suffers from underage street drinking and that 54% felt retailers could do more to tackle the problem.
"The most emphatic finding from this polling exercise is the sense of parental accountability for underage drinking," said ACS chief executive James Lowman.
"This is a message that the Government should listen to.
"What our research also shows is that the public aren't fooled by the Government's persistent attacks on our sector in the media.
"Sooner or later the Government is going to have to confront what the public know is the biggest cause of the problem.
"More needs to be done to educate parents and bring light to the real issue of proxy purchasing, along with ways of dealing with the problem of violence and abusive behaviour towards shop staff."