A mother-of-four has been disqualified from driving for refusing to provide a breath specimen after an early morning visit to Tesco.

Juliet Simpson, of Downside Close, Ipswich, pleaded guilty to the offence when she appeared before the town’s South East Suffolk Magistrates’ Court.

The offence happened at around 2.20am on April 23.

Prosecutor Colette Harper said a police sergeant was at Tesco in Copdock following a report that a woman who had been drinking was driving a Ford Galaxy.

He went to the entrance to the Park and Ride while other officers covered both exits.

At 2.37am the Ford Galaxy was seen to leave Tesco car park and indicated right at the roundabout, which it navigated slowly before going towards Chantry.

The Sergeant put his vehicle’s blue lights on, but there was no reaction from 56-year-old Simpson.

The officer turned the lights off and continued following the vehicle into Scrivener Drive.

The Galaxy was travelling at around 15mph and weaving in the carriageway. At one point it clipped the kerb.

The Sergeant put his lights on again and stopped Simpson’s car near the veterinary centre in Donald Mackintosh Way.

A roadside breath test indicated a reading of 88 microgrammes of breath in 100 millilitres of alcohol. The legal limit is 35mcgs.

However, despite saying she was trying her hardest Simpson failed to give an official breath specimen on the intoximeter at the police investigation centre.

Magistrates were told Simpson had been conviction of drink-driving in August 2009.

Nicola Pope, mitigating, said her client had asthma for a number of years, but was not having an attack at the time of the breath test.

Ms Pope said: “This was not a deliberate refusal in my respectful submission.”

The court heard Simpson has had alcohol issues throughout her adult life and no longer intended to drive.

Simpson was banned from driving for three years.

She was also fined £200 and told she must pay £30 to the victims’ fund.