Former England football star John Barnes has sparked fury after he escaped a ban for driving without insurance by claiming he was too poor to employ a driver.

Barnes - who raked in millions of pounds during a 20-year career as a top football player - told magistrates a ban would cause him 'exceptional hardship' even though he still earns thousands of pounds a week.

The 44-year-old, who played for Watford, Liverpool and Newcastle, had faced a lengthy ban from the roads after he was caught driving his £60,000 BMW X5 sports car on the M6 motorway without insurance.

But Barnes complained that a driving ban would mean he would be unable to carry out his new job as manager of the Jamaican national team because he could not be expected to rely on public transport to watch football matches.



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