A kerb-crawler who was arrested twice in just over an hour had his driver's licence withdrawn yesterday in a bid to stop him shopping for sex.

Police in Middlesbrough first caught Craig Stuart Golightly at 8pm on January 26 after he had picked up a prostitute in his van.

Claire Dennis, prosecuting, told Teesside magistrates: "Golightly was in his vehicle. He approached the prostitute, she got into the front passenger side and he drove to the Bowes Road Industrial Estate where the police found the girl in a state of undress.

"When arrested he told police, 'I'll hold my hands up. I was out of order'."

Golightly, 32, of Ridgeside, North Close, Spennymoor, County Durham, who works for a building firm, was summoned to appear in court at a later date and released.

But at 9.10pm - only 70 minutes after first being arrested - Golightly was seen in Union Street with another prostitute.

Ms Dennis added: "He went straight out and was arrested for the same offence."

Golightly, who was not in court, had earlier admitted by letter two offences of soliciting a woman for the purposes of prostitution. Sentencing was adjourned until yesterday.

In a bid to crack down on kerb-crawling and other forms of anti-social behaviour such as joyriding, the Home Office brought in new laws in January to take away offenders' driving licences.

Golightly was banned for a month and fined £300 and with £34 costs. Magistrate Robin Cook said: "We have given credit for a guilty plea and decided that a fine is an appropriate punishment.

"However, there is an aggravating factor because there was a previous similar conviction and in view of that we are imposing a one-month driving ban."