A BANNED driver who got behind the wheel claimed he did not know he had been ordered off the road, a court was told.

Burnley magistrates heard Jason McCourt, 27, told police he did not know he was banned - but he was expecting to be disqualified as he had had some letters from court.

When he was spoken to by police, a three and a half inch lock knife was found hidden in the waistband of his trousers.

McCourt, of The Crescent, Colne, admitted failing to comply with a curfew order, driving while disqualified, using an uninsured vehicle and having an article with a sharply pointed blade in a public place.

The defendant was bailed until April 30 for a trial to decide whether or not he knew he was disqualified. McCourt, who must live at his home address, had 50 previous convictions.

Teresa Feeley, prosecuting, said the defendant was on Ruskin Avenue, Colne, last November 11, when a police saw him.