A 64-year-old drink-driver has been hit with a £1,000 fine and an 18 month ban.

Michael Kenny appeared before magistrates recently, entering a guilty plea.

He was also ordered to take an extended driving test at the end of his ban and to pay £125 prosecution costs.

The court heard that police were on patrol at Douglas Road in Ballasalla on January 3, at around 10.40pm.

They saw Kenny in a Toyota Avensis, and described him as driving extremely slowly at a junction.

He also had a defective tail light and was stopped at Clagh Vane.

Officers described Kenny as having glazed eyes and smelling of alcohol.

He didn’t provide a roadside breathalyser test and was arrested.

At police headquarters, he agreed to provide a blood sample, as he had difficulties providing breath due to medical reasons.

The blood was sent for analysis and later produced a reading of 88. The legal limit is 80.

However, there’d been a three hour delay in taking the sample, due to Kenny going to hospital.

A back calculation stated that the reading at the time of driving would have been 114.

Defence advocate Ian Kermode said that his client had been out socialising at the Colby Glen, and said he had drunk one pint of Guinness, and two glasses of mead.

Mr Kermode said that Kenny denied driving slowly at the junction, and that he had made it clear at the roadside that he was unable to provide a breath sample, but had said he would give blood.

The advocate said that his client had given the police details of his medical condition and medication he was taking.

Magistrates ordered Kenny, who lives at Saddle Road in Douglas, to pay the fine and costs at a rate of £40 per month.