A drink-driving stable hand who told police “I’ve had three pints, what’s it got to do with you?” has been banned from the road for 20 months and fined £300.

Darren Enright’s Renault Mégane smelled like fish 'n' chips and alcohol, according to the police officer who stopped the 43-year-old’s vehicle in Newmarket at 10.45pm on September 12 last year.

When asked if he had consumed alcohol, Enright replied: “I’ve had three pints. What’s it got to do with you?”

The officer’s suspicions were further confirmed by a positive roadside breathalyser test, Suffolk magistrates heard.

When the officer removed the keys from the car’s ignition, Enright became so animated that nearby residents emerged from their homes to complain about the noise, prosecutor Colette Harper told the court.

En route to the station, Enright repeatedly stated: “I just want to ask one question”, but expanded no further on the statement.

He was convicted on December 3 but failed to attend court two weeks later, after an adjournment, and was arrested on a warrant.

Enright appeared in custody, via video link from Bury St Edmunds police investigation centre, to be sentenced for driving with 86 microgrammes of alcohol in 100 millilitres of breath – more than twice the legal limit of 35mcg.

The court heard he was convicted of two previous excess alcohol offences – most recently in 2000.

Duty solicitor Claire Lockwood said a summons had been sent to Enright’s old address but not forwarded to his new premises in Portland Green, Newmarket, until after the original hearing.

She said: “This wasn’t a case of just ignoring a court order. There was an agreed adjournment from December 3 due to work commitments. He then had to move address but failed to notify the court and wasn’t aware a warrant had been issued.

“He fully accepts he consumed alcohol and drove when he shouldn’t have.

“He left Wiltshire with the promise of work in Newmarket, but the work didn’t materialise. Although he found temporary employment as a stable hand, personal circumstances had caused him some stress.

“He apologised for his behaviour when he arrived at the police station and there were no aggravating features of his driving, which was over a short distance from town.”