A PEER who organised the Queen’s funeral has been banned from driving, despite claiming he needs his licence to arrange the King’s upcoming coronation.

The Earl Marshal, the Duke of Norfolk, pleaded guilty at Lavender Hill Magistrates’ Court in London to using his mobile phone behind the wheel.

Edward Fitzalan-Howard, who lives at Arundel Castle, was stopped by police on April 7 after driving his BMW through a red light in Battersea.

Prosecutor Jonathan Bryan told magistrates that the duke had said he had “not been aware of going through the red light, but accepted this was because he was using his mobile” to speak to his wife.

The court heard that he had already totted up nine penalty points on his driving licence from two previous speeding offences in 2019, meaning a further six would lead to a ban.

The duke argued he would suffer “exceptional hardship” if he was disqualified, highlighting his official duties along with his conservation work to prevent “nature’s complete collapse”.

However, a bench of magistrates, chaired by Judith Way, issued him with six points and banned him from driving for six months.

Ms Way said: “We accept that this is a unique case because of the defendant’s role in society and in particular in relation to the King’s coronation.

“The hardship needs to be exceptional and, although we find inconvenience may be caused, we don’t find it exceptional hardship.”

The duke, who is the most senior lay member of the Roman Catholic Church in Britain and a crossbench peer in the House of Lords, was also fined £800 and ordered to pay another £400 in other costs.

He gave evidence for more than 30 minutes in secret after magistrates ruled the media and public should be excluded from court for reasons of “national security”.

It followed an application from his lawyer who said details of the coronation should remain private until after the event.

In open court, the Duke of Norfolk told magistrates his office and local railway station are four miles away from his Arundel Castle Home and said the loss of his licence could be “very, very serious”, leading to the loss of jobs for up to 30 of his employees.

Whilst he said he has the financial means to hire a driver, he said: “It is almost impossible to have enough drivers to carry out this task of getting me to the right place”.

The duke previously described organising the Queen’s funeral as “both humbling and daunting” and is now in charge of arranging the King’s coronation, expected to take place in spring or summer next year.