A quad biker whose bike was not supposed to be driven on public roads reportedly sped off with a young child clinging to the handlebars after seeing a police patrol car.

24-year-old Paul Forsyth was allegedly more than three times the drink-drive limit and fled with the child, who sat next to the petrol tank of the machine.

The court heard that Forsyth was with a group of people at the time and that neither he nor the child was wearing any protective clothing or headgear.

Magistrates were also told that Forsyth drove “in an erratic manner putting himself and the child in danger” when he sped off towards a former railway track near Bridge Road, Shotton Colliery, on September 20.

He was said to be more than three times the drink-drive limit with 116 microgrammes of alcohol in millimetres of breath when apprehended by the police. But the legal limit is 35.

He admitted driving with excess alcohol, without bike insurance and without valid driving licence.

He was granted unconditional bail to appear in Durham Crown Court on a date not yet fixed.