David Cameron will make a last ditch bid to stop a British grandfather receiving 350 lashes for making wine in Saudi Arabia - amid fears the punishment would kill him.

Karl Andree, 74, has already spent a year in a notorious prison in the strict Islamic kingdom but faces a further brutal punishment before being freed.

Mr Andree's desperate son Simon, 35, today accused the government of putting his father's case at the 'bottom of the pecking order' to protect Middle East business interests.

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Arrested: Karl Andree, 74, is facing 350 lashes after police in Saudi Arabia found bottles of wine in his car

Distraught: Mr Andree with, from left to right, son Hugh, daughter Kristen, wife Verity and son Simon

But the Prime Minister today vowed to personally intervene in the case by writing to the kingdom's rulers to ask for clemency.

The Prime Minister's official spokesman said the case was 'extremely concerning' and revealed that the government had now cancelled a £6million contract to run prisons in the Middle East country.

Mr Andree, whose wife is dying in a home in the UK, was arrested in Jeddah last year after police found bottles of wine in his car.

He was sentenced to 12 months in prison and flogging for breaching the country's strict anti-alcohol laws.

He has served his time in jail but is still locked up as Saudi officials wait to carry out the lashings.

Son Hugh, 46, has demanded the Prime Minister 'guarantees' he will take action and get his father released this week.

'I want guarantees not assurances,' he said.

'It’s simple, I want his release this week and to get him home safe.

'Do I trust the prime minister to do the right thing? Yes I do. Do I believe he has a moral compass? Yes I do.'

Hugh said his father deserved to be with his wife of 50-years, Verity, as they approached their 50th wedding anniversary.

'We have a duty of care to look after our own people, that’s all we ask for,' he said.

'Dad's a decent person. He does have a moral compass. He does believe in right and wrong and he believes he should have fulfilled his sentence as given to him by the Saudi authorities. He broke the law but he has done his time.

'He should be with his wife of 50 years when she dies. If he is still in prison when she passes away, that will finish him off.'

Asked whether 'political considerations' were getting in the way of efforts in his father's case Hugh's brother, Simon, told the BBC's Today Programme: 'I think my father is at the bottom of the list, the bottom of the pecking order.

'I feel that all the business dealings between Saudi Arabia and the UK are probably getting priority.'

He added: 'He’s had cancer three times in the last five years and he has been there for the last 14 months. He needs to be getting regular check-ups. Maybe he’s not getting them, we just don’t know.

'When he went to prison he was in remission but I don’t know what state he’s in at the moment.

'They all smoke in the prison and he’s never smoked. It’s having a detrimental affect to his breathing.

'It’s almost his 50th anniversary. He should be at home looking after his wife.'

Simon had earlier told the Sun: 'There is no doubt in our minds that 350 lashes will kill him.

'Shocking': A family friend named Danielle (left) has condemned the sentence given to Mr Andree (right)

Mr Andree's two sons and daughter, Kirsten Piroth, 45, have been lobbying the Saudi government for more than a month.

So far their pleas have gone unnoticed in the alcohol-free kingdom.

Simon also criticised the Foreign Office, saying his sister Kirsten Piroth called but was told they had no knowledge of Karl.

The IT consultant said: 'My sister rang the Foreign Office last week and she asked to speak to someone about it but the person who we have been dealing with had left and no-one knew who my father was.

'I think he’s the only Briton incarcerated out in Jeddah. That doesn’t give you much confidence in the Foreign Office.

'As far as I know Number Ten are are going to write to Saudi Arabia. But all you ever get from the Foreign Office is they say they are making enquiries but you never get any outcome as to what’s happened.

'I hope David Cameron has the moral compass to do what’s right. I hope he does the right thing ultimately.

'If there’s been deals, quite frankly I’m not interested, we just want justice for our father, for the lashing to stop. He’s served his time, he should be released.'

Mrs Piroth said: 'My dad broke the rules in a country that does not allow alcohol but he has now served his time.

'He was sentenced to 12 months, 14 months ago.

'He is not a well man, I worry for his health and that he won't survive this ordeal.

'My six year-old daughter worries about him every day and asks me all the time if 'Grandpops' is out of jail yet.'

Mr Andree's family appealed to David Cameron to intervene to bring the 74-year-old home sparking the PM to write to Saudi authorities today

Mr Andree's daughter-in-law, Sally Webb, said the family had been unable to contact the grandfather-of-seven to find out about his treatment in prison and even got conned by a fake lawyer.

Ms Webb, who lives with Simon Andree and their nine-year-old son Edward in Clapham, south London, told MailOnline: 'There's been a distinct lack of communication.

'Simon threw around £35,000 at a lawyer and they turned out to be bogus.

'He's been in there too long. It's crazy.

'We thought he would get a couple of months and be let out.

But he's a real trooper, he really is.'

She says the family went public with Mr Andree's plight as a last resort after her partner appealed to MPs for help.

She said: 'Karl was worried that talking to the press would anger the Saudi government and that could make it so much worse.

'But Simon has been to the Houses of Parliament but the MPs have just given him a load of waffle so his dad said finally " let's just do it".'

A family friend named Danielle told Sky News: 'The fact of waking up and finding out that he's been given 350 lashes is quite shocking, especially after he's already been given 12 months inside.

'Karl is a really nice guy, genuinely kind, caring and he's quite fragile.

'He did know what the law was and we all know what the laws are in Saudi Arabia and how alcohol and drugs are really forbidden and really strict.

'But he's 75 years of age and he's been in there for 12 months.

'His original sentence was 12 months in prison not 12 months and 350 lashes.'

A Foreign Office spokesman said: 'Our embassy staff are continuing to assist Mr Andree, including regular visits to check on his welfare, and frequent contact with his lawyer and family.

'Ministers and senior officials have raised Mr Andree's case with the Saudi government and we are actively seeking his release as soon as possible.'

The family are hoping he will be saved on compassionate grounds.

Saudi Arabia has a shocking human rights record, attracting criticism for the hundreds of beheadings, floggings and mutilations it carries out every year.

It has executed 135 people on charges ranging from murder to witchcraft since January alone.

Saudi Arabia has been the frequent focus of human rights groups, attracting criticism for the hundreds of beheadings, floggings (like the one above) and mutilations it carries out every year

Drug use, homosexuality, adultery and apostasy are all punishable with death in the hard-line Sunni nation.

Saudi Arabia also bans women from driving and enjoying other rights and regularly jails political opponents of the regime.

The country sparked worldwide outrage after sentencing Saudi blogger Raif Badawi to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in jail for insulting Islam.

Two teenagers are also set to be beheaded for their role in anti-government protests.

Dawoud al-Marhoon was 17 when he was arrested by Saudi security forces in May 2012, at the height of demonstrations in the country's Eastern Province.

He was reportedly tortured and made to sign a 'confession' that was later said to have been relied on to convict him.

His case follows that of Ali al-Nimr who faces a sentence of 'crucifixion' – involving beheading and the public display of his body – for his role in protests in 2012 when he was only 17 years old.

Uproar: Teenager Ali al-Nimr (above) is due to be crucified in Saudi Arabia for his role in demonstrations

Heavy-handed: The country sparked worldwide outrage after sentencing Saudi blogger Raif Badawi (above) to 1,000 lashes and 10 years in jail for insulting Islam

Al-Nimr's sentence has prompted strong international criticism, with the French government and a group of UN experts among those calling for a halt to the executions.

Last week, it also emerged that Saudi Arabia had also threatened to execute those who 'spread rumours' about the government on social media.

Only the worst 'rumour-mongers' will be executed, while lesser offenders will be punished with lashes, imprisonment, travel bans, house arrest and a social media ban, a Ministry of Justice source is quoted to have said.

It is the first time the Gulf nation has created a rule to punish ordinary people for what they say on Twitter and Facebook.

The United Nations also came under fire last month for handing Saudi Arabia a key human rights role.

Faisal bin Hassan Trad, the Saudi ambassador to the UN in Geneva, was elected to the powerful role of chair of independent experts on the Human Rights Council.

He will head up an important five-strong diplomatic group, which has the power to select candidates for scores of monitoring roles in conflict zones.