A man from Pembroke has been disqualified from driving for 12 weeks after using a mobile phone whilst behind the wheel of his car.

Forty-six-year-old Brian Anthony Relph, of Commons Road, was convicted of the charge in his absence, when the case came before Haverfordwest magistrates court last month.

Appearing in court on Tuesday, to claim mitigating circumstances, Mr. Relph, who currently had nine points on his driving licence, said that he would suffer exceptional hardship should he lose his licence for any period of time.

His solicitor, Mr. Mark Layton, told magistrates that his client, who was an employee of Pembrokeshire County Council, had recently moved to the area and that the loss of his licence would cause him difficulty in fulfilling his work duties and affect his ability to see his son who lived in London.

The court heard how on October 16 of last year, Mr. relph was spotted by a police officer driving his Kia vehicle in the afternoon, at Bridgend Square in Haverfordwest, whilst using his hand held mobile phone, and was approached by the officer after he had turned into County Hall.

Magistrates said that they failed to find exceptional circumstances in this case, and disqualified Mr. Relph for 12 weeks, awarding him three penalty points.

The defendant was also fined £365 for the offence and ordered to pay costs of £85 and a £36 victim surcharge.