A trucker caught drunk at the wheel of a fully-laden articulated lorry asked a sheriff for leniency because he was only driving at 50mph.

But Sheriff Michael Fletcher told Christopher Hazlett that he posed so much danger on a dual carriageway that he had no option but to send him to prison.

Hazlett was jailed for four months and banned from driving for three years after he admitted driving his lorry while he was almost three times over the limit.

His solicitor Cheryl Clark asked the court not to imprison her client and said he was driving slower than normal on the A9 when he was reported to be drunk at the wheel.

She said: "He very much appreciates he was driving an articulated lorry and the impact that has. He was travelling at speeds of 40 to 50mph.

"He was not speeding with the vehicle. He was going slower than most vehicles on the road. He is aware the court will take a more serious view because of the vehicle he was driving but I would ask the court to impose a community-based disposal."

However, Sheriff Fletcher said: "This is a very serious offence indeed. Driving with too much alcohol is always treated seriously. This was driving a heavy goods vehicle, fully laden, with at least twice the legal alcohol limit.

"The consequences of an inability to drive a vehicle such as this properly can be horrific. I am afraid the only way I can deal with this is by a custodial sentence."

Hazlett was transporting waste paper worth £100,000 when he was reported to the police by witnesses concerned about his driving.

Hazlett, 47, of Cona Park, Banknock, admitted driving the articulated lorry on the A9 between Perth and Stirling on January 19 when he was over the limit. His blood alcohol reading was 90 mics, compared to the 35 mics legal limit.

The court was told that Hazlett had been struggling with an alcohol problem and had been drinking the previous evening while organising a child's birthday party.