Joshua Allen - the son of celebrity chef Rachel Allen - has been jailed for 15 months for having over €22,000 worth of cannabis for sale at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in Cork.

Judge Sean O'Donnabhain said he would treat the 19-year-old in the same way as anyone else in his position, and he took offence to suggest otherwise.

Joshua Allen pleaded guilty to having €22,600 worth of cannabis for sale or supply at the Ballymaloe Cookery School in August 2018.

He also pleaded guilty to having a small quantity of cocaine for his own use, and to having €200 worth of cannabis at his home at Shanagarry.

He came before Judge Sean O'Donnabhain last November, with what the judge described today as a lamentable probation report - which showed a complete failure by him to understand the seriousness of the situation.

The court was told that he had a drug addiction, and he was admitted to Cuan Mhuire Treatment Centre - where he remained until today with no release time at Christmas.

The probation report today showed that he's a changed man. Senior counsel Siobhan Lankford said such was his addiction that he had tested positive for cannabis at Cuan Mhuire after the last court appearance.

She asked the judge to treat him in the same way as anyone else coming before the court, with no previous convictions and a relatively small quantity of drugs in the context of a Section 15A charge.

Judge Sean O'Donnabhain said the suggestion was offensive.

He said Joshua Allen had travelled to London with €2,000 and arranged the deal with a contact he had in America, and that he did it for profit.

The drugs were discovered when Customs officers at the sorting office in Portlaoise intercepted a package marked 'clothing'.

He sentenced him to two and a half years in jail, but suspended 15 months and he backdated it to November.