The silence is further shattered by a number of panic calls from the more senior end of the Criminal Defence fraternity.

They all ask:

"Will I have to do the Duty Solicitor accreditation? It will be like retaking my driving test and I could well fail!"

This stampede seems to have been sparked by a recent leaflet from the Law Society.

The answer can be found in Focus on CDS 17 page 3 which you can download here.

“These requirements do not apply to current Duty Solicitors”