A judge who described burglary as requiring "a huge amount of courage" has been reprimanded for damaging public confidence in the judicial process.

Judge Peter Bowers has been issued with a reprimand by the Office for Judicial Complaints (OJC) after complaints were made about his remarks in Teesside Crown Court in September this year, when handing down a sentence to a 26-year-old man for burglary.

Bowers also said during the sentencing that he thought jail often did criminals little good, with the burglar in question spared a prison sentence and instead handed a two-year supervision order with drug rehabilitation and 200 hours' unpaid work, as well as a one-year driving ban.