A BMW driver was caught driving while seven times over the drug limit.

Liam Lewis admitted the offence when he appeared before magistrates in Hereford.

Police had pulled the 23-year-old BMW driver over in a routine traffic stop in Hereford's Whitecross Road just before 10pm on October 20, prosecutor Ralph Robyns Landricombe said.

Lewis was asked to take a roadside drug test and was arrested after it returned a positive result for cannabis.

An evidential blood test in custody revealed Lewis had 15 microgrammes of cannabis metabolite delta-9-tetrahydrocannabinol per litre of blood. The legal limit is two.

Chris Read, for Lewis, said it was clear that it had simply been a routine stop.

"There was no criticism of his driving," he said.

"He has found himself before the court due to a lack of knowledge. He had smoked 24 hours before and had no idea this would remain in his system for so long. He now has to face the consequences."

The court heard the factory worker believed he would be able to continue his employment despite a mandatory driving ban.

Lewis, of Castle Road, Presteigne, was disqualified from driving for 12 months and fined £309. He must also pay costs of £135 and a £34 victim surcharge.