Britain's top judge confirmed on Thursday that the new body to lay down sentencing guidance would not pander to "public clamour" or bow to pressure from parliament.

Lord Woolf, the lord chief justice, told MPs on the Commons home affairs committee that the arrival of the new Sentencing Guidelines Council should stop "knee-jerk" legislating by parliament on sentencing.

"I do think it should be concerned about victims of crime to a very real degree; also it is very important that it should find which punishments can provide evidence... to show they do provide protection to the public."

Meanwhile, the selection of High Court judges in England and Wales should be halted pending an overhaul because it is biased and outdated, a watchdog said on Thursday.

The call came from the Commission for Judicial Appointments on the strength of the findings of the first audit of the way High Court judges are chosen.