The Director of Public Prosecutions has rebutted criticisms that crown advocates work to lower professional standards than barristers at the self-employed Bar.

Sir Ken Macdonald, QC, said that an independent inspection report had found that Crown Prosecution Service advocates "are as good if not better than those from the self-employed Bar".

He added: "They all possess the same professional qualifications, are bound by the same professional rules and have the same resonsibilities as members of the self-employed Bar."

He also dismissed the notion that they are not being made crown advocates "by choice".

On the contrary, he said, "our crown advocates ARE following their chosen career path" and the advocacy opportunities were among the main reason why "lawyers are now queuing up to join us".

Sir Ken was responding to an article in Times Law (April 22) in by Sally O'Neill, QC, chairman of the Criminal Bar Association.

She gave warning that the CPS's policy of taking on more of its own advocacy in the crown courts - through targets for CPS areas of 20-25 per cent by 2008-09 - was putting advocacy standards at risk.

She said that CPS prosecutors were not advocates by choice, had neither the advocacy training, court experience nor the years of prosecuting and defending essential to being an effective advocate.

Ms O'Neill also said that while the Bar was subject to an "exacting and rigorous" grading system to ensure only those with the right level of experience took certain cases, there was no comparable transparent grading system for CPS advocates.

But Sir Ken told The Times in response: "It is wrong to suggest that the CPS has no plans to grade its advocates.

"In fact we have designed a scheme, analogous to the very grading we use for the private Bar and we have shared this with the self-employed profession. It is due for implementation in June."

He added: "I am pleased that Sally O'Neill describes the CPS policy to encourage the use of in-house advocates as 'understandable and laudable'. We agree."

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