Max Hill KC is stepping down as Director of Public Prosecutions later this year.

The leading barrister, who took up the post for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in November 2018, confirmed his decision on Twitter.

He posted a link to an article by legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg which says he will step down at the end of October when his five-year appointment as head of the CPS comes to an end.

The article says Mr Hill could have asked for a further term but he told CPS staff on Monday that he would not be doing so.

Mr Hill was called to the bar in 1987 and appointed Queen’s Counsel in 2008.

Throughout his career he has led some of the most significant and high-profile murder trials, including work on one of the Damilola Taylor murder trials and the 2005 London bombings.

A CPS spokesperson said: “The DPP is in his final year of the five-year term which individuals serve in the role. He remains as focused as ever on delivering the CPS’s priorities.”