Lawyers for a British tourist held in Egypt accused of smuggling painkillers will write to her trial judge appealing to correct her plea, after she misunderstood questions and admitted importing the drugs.

Laura Plummer sobbed in an Egyption courtroom when she realised what had happened and tried to correct her plea on the first day of her trial in the Red Sea town of Safaga.

The 33-year-old shop worker from Hull was arrested at Hurghada airport after she was found to be carrying 290 tramadol tablets in her suitcase.

She has insisted the tablets were for her Egyptian partner Omar Abdel Aziz, known as “Caboo”, 31, who suffers from chronic back pain. She said she was unaware the drug, which is legal in the UK, was banned in Egypt.

Standing before the judge in court, Ms Plummer was asked: “You are accused of smuggling and possessing Tramadol to Egypt?”