logo
Madeleine McCann latest: Parents not commenting on new search - as police shift area of focus

Madeleine McCann latest: Parents not commenting on new search - as police shift area of focus

Sky News2 days ago

That's all for our coverage today
Today, police officers in Portugal continued to scour scrubland and abandoned buildings on the second day of the latest searches for missing Madeleine McCann.
Officers were seen clearing vegetation around abandoned buildings, wearing protective gear such as hard hats and face masks, and a digger was used to move rubble.
They are working in fields and scrubland between a main road and the sea, with a few buildings nearby, including a vineyard.
The search is being carried out at the request of the German federal police, as they look for evidence that could implicate prime suspect Christian B, who is in prison for raping a 72-year old woman in Praia da Luz in 2005.
He is due to be released from jail in September if no further charges are brought.
Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry McCann are not commenting during the "active police investigation", staff at the Find Madeleine Campaign said.
Our correspondent Dan Whitehead has been at the scene of the search on the outskirts of Praia da Luz and watching the scenes unfold.
You can scroll back through the page for all the updates from today.
Eyewitness: 'It's clear search activity has moved'
Our correspondent Dan Whitehead, who is in Praia da Luz, says police activity has moved.
"The focus yesterday for police was on disused farm buildings, close to where the prime suspect Christian B lived.
"It's clear that the activity has moved elsewhere at the moment."
He says the ground is hard and dense, and that poses a challenge for officers.
"German police are leading this investigation because of that prime suspect Christian B," he adds.
"He denies all involvement."
Who is Christian B?
Christian B is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence in Germany for the 2005 rape of an elderly woman in the same resort Madeleine disappeared from two years later.
He was arrested in Italy in 2018 and is due to be released from prison in September.
He has not been formally indicted or charged with any offence related to the McCann case and denies any involvement.
But in 2022, Portuguese police named him an 'arguido' in their investigation into Madeleine's disappearance, which makes him a formal suspect and gives him the right to silence and appropriate legal representation.
He moved to Portugal in 1995 after serving a two-year prison sentence in Germany for sexually assaulting a six-year-old girl in 1994. He lived in a cottage in Praia da Luz.
Soon after the world's media descended on the resort in 2007, he moved back to Germany.
Police have previously claimed he made a 30-minute call from the same area just an hour before Madeleine disappeared.
He is alleged to have confessed on two occasions to kidnapping and sexually abusing the toddler - once to a friend in a German bar in 2017 and again to his prison cellmate in 2020.
There was no suggestion in either alleged confession that he killed her, and he continues to deny any involvement.
When did the last search take place?
German police were last in Portugal on the McCann case in 2023.
They spent a week searching the Barragem do Arade reservoir around 30 miles from Praia da Luz, after reports of a "tip-off".
The search was requested by the German authorities who in 2020 named convicted sex offender, Christian B, the prime suspect in Madeleine's disappearance.
While he has always denied any involvement, it's reported he liked to visit this reservoir, calling the area his "paradise."
Watch: What do we know about new search?
Investigators are continuing to scour scrubland and abandoned buildings in the second day of the latest searches for missing Madeleine McCann.
Teams of German and Portuguese police officers, as well as firefighters, face the task of hunting for evidence 18 years on from the disappearance of the British three-year-old in 2007.
This week's operation is focusing on a sparsely developed area of land around 3.5 miles from Praia da Luz, where Madeleine was last seen while on holiday with her parents and siblings.
Here, Sky correspondent Alice Porter takes a look at what we know after the initial searches this week...
Search teams using hedge trimmers around run-down buildings
Parked vans and police officers remain in Atalaia, Sky News' Dan Whitehead reports.
Search teams have begun clearing the surrounding areas of more abandoned structures as part of the investigation.
Officers can also be seen using hedge trimmers around more run-down buildings in the same scrubland area on the outskirts of Lagos.
Madeleine's parents not commenting on new search
Kate and Gerry McCann will not be releasing any statements during this "active police investigation", according to staff at the Find Madeleine Campaign.
We last heard from the girl's parents last month, on the 18th anniversary of her disappearance.
"No matter how near or far she is, she continues to be right here with us, every day, but especially on her special day," they said ahead of her 22nd birthday.
"We continue to 'celebrate' her as the very beautiful and unique person she is.
"We miss her."
In pictures: At the site of building search
Investigators continue to search derelict buildings in Atalaia today.
These images show how it looks inside, with the ground cleared of rocks and debris.
Key dates since disappearance of Madeleine
Searches for Madeleine McCann have resumed in Portugal, near where she was last seen in 2007.
Madeleine, then aged three, vanished while on holiday with her family in the Algarve resort, after her parents went out to dinner and left her sleeping in a room with her toddler twin siblings.
What prompted this new search is still unclear.
But the authorities are likely to be searching for a body - or any sign that Madeleine McCann was taken to the area they are searching after she was abducted.
Here is a look at the key dates since the disappearance of Madeleine...
Police digging at site near coast
Our team is by the coast in Atalaia, where officers are still searching for evidence.
We can hear digging from inside this abandoned building, pictured below, continuing yesterday's work around ruins and wells.
A police drone is flying overheard, while officers can be seen throwing rocks out from inside the structure.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Labour missing housebuilding target by 170,000 homes a year, report finds
Labour missing housebuilding target by 170,000 homes a year, report finds

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

Labour missing housebuilding target by 170,000 homes a year, report finds

Labour is on track to miss its housebuilding target after planning permission for new homes tumbled to a record low. A bleak report by the Home Builders Federation yesterday dealt a blow to the Government's vow to build 1.5million properties by 2029. Stark figures show Labour is falling short of its target by 170,000 homes a year. Industry leaders said the data was 'disastrous' and without urgent support from ministers there is 'little chance' of reaching the goal. Just 39,170 homes were given planning permission in England in the first three months of the year – the lowest quarterly figure since records began. That was a 55 per cent drop on the previous quarter and almost 32 per cent lower than a year earlier. The 225,067 units given approval in the 12 months to the end of March was the worst performance in 12 years. The federation said its data 'starkly illustrates the urgent need for Government to address the barriers to housing supply' if they are to get 'anywhere near the much-vaunted' target. A lack of support for first-time buyers, overstretched planning departments and high taxation has squeezed housing development, the trade association said. It also cited a problem with housing associations failing to buy tens of thousands of new homes designated for social and affordable rents. Chief executive Neil Jefferson said: 'The latest planning figures are disastrous for an industry and a government looking to increase housing supply over the coming years. 'Unless urgent interventions are made, there seems little chance of us building the homes we know are desperately needed.' Around 200,000 homes are being built each year, below the 370,000 target, the figures show. The number of new developments approved in the first quarter of 2025 was 2,018 – the worst quarterly figure in 20 years. The HBF called on ministers to introduce support for first-time buyers which could lead to the construction of an extra 100,000 homes. Investment in high-rise blocks has 'collapsed' due to delays at the Building Safety Regulator which 'has been unable to deal with its workload', the group said. There is also a shortfall of 2,000 local council planning officers, and new taxes have 'ballooned' since 2020, putting pressure on builders. A housing department spokesman said it is 'taking decisive action' to speed up the planning process and that its 'seismic reforms will help drive UK housebuilding to its highest level in over 40 years'. Meanwhile, builders could be required to install solar panels on the 'vast majority' of new homes in England, according to Energy Secretary Ed Miliband. It comes a month after No10 confirmed the panels should be installed on as many new properties as possible amid speculation that ministers will make them a mandatory requirement on new builds by 2027.

Government's anti-radicalisation programme says being worried about mass migration is 'terrorist ideology'
Government's anti-radicalisation programme says being worried about mass migration is 'terrorist ideology'

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

Government's anti-radicalisation programme says being worried about mass migration is 'terrorist ideology'

The government's anti-radicalisation programme has decided worries about mass migration are 'terrorist ideology'. Among the 'dangerous' beliefs flagged by Prevent's online training course are 'Cultural nationalism' and the idea 'Western culture is under threat'. A statement on the official website describes 'Extreme right-wing' ideology as terrorism, before going on to list three sub-categories. It says concerns around 'lack of integration by certain ethnic and cultural groups' are also a threat. Critics have warned the definition of 'cultural nationalism' is too broad and could even encompass the likes of Sir Keir Starmer. Lord Young, the general secretary of the Free Speech Union (FSU) said: 'The definition in the training course expands the scope of suspicion to include individuals whose views are entirely lawful but politically controversial. 'Now that 'cultural nationalism' has been classified as a subcategory of extreme Right-wing terrorist ideology, even mainstream, Right-of-centre beliefs risk being treated as ideologically suspect, despite falling well within the bounds of lawful expression.' Lord Young added the definition could also capture Mr Jenrick, the former immigration minister, who warned 'excessive, uncontrolled migration threatens to cannibalise the compassion of the British public'. There are three categories of 'Extreme right-wing' terrorism. They are 'Cultural nationalism', 'white/ethno-nationalism' and 'white supremacism' Prevent is one part of the government's overall counter-terrorism strategy and is described as a multi-agency programme that 'aims to stop individuals becoming terrorists'. A Home Office spokesman said: 'Prevent is not about restricting debate or free speech, but about protecting those susceptible to radicalisation.' Each year, thousands of teachers, police officers, health workers and other staff undergo Prevent training. The programmes official 'refresher awareness' course states 'cultural nationalism' as one of the most common 'sub-categories of extreme Right-wing terrorist ideologies', alongside white supremacism and white/ethno-nationalism'. The row comes despite a report by Sir William Shawcross, a former independent reviewer of Prevent, warning that mainstream literature and even Sir Jacob Rees-Mogg had been described as 'cultural nationalists'. Sir William recommended Prevent must be 'consistent in the threshold that it applies across ideologies to ensure a proportionate and effective response'. Among the programme's other failures were its inability to identify people who went on to carry out terrorist attacks, according to Sir William. A former government adviser has now also described the 'cultural nationalism' definition as 'pretty shoddy'. It comes amid fears that despite a person being deemed to require 'no further action', their name could be smeared, with it remaining on police or other databases. Last month, retired police officer Julian Foulkes was arrested and detained for a social media post - with officials who searched his house describing his book collection as 'very Brexity'. Mr Foulkes subsequently received an apology and £20,000 compensation. The FSU has said it has already worked to support members of Prevent like a 24-year-old autistic man whose social worker reporter he had been viewing 'offensive and anti-trans' websites and 'focussing on lots of Right-wing dark comedy'.

Family SUVs face road tax hikes under new proposals pushed by Labour politicians
Family SUVs face road tax hikes under new proposals pushed by Labour politicians

Daily Mail​

timean hour ago

  • Daily Mail​

Family SUVs face road tax hikes under new proposals pushed by Labour politicians

Family SUVs could be targeted with hikes in road tax and parking permits under proposals being pushed for by Labour politicians. The call for higher levies on large SUVs, often chosen by families for their space, came from Labour and Green party members of the London Assembly. The motion was passed this week amid concerns about 'car-spreading' – where more road space is taken up by larger vehicles – and calls on London mayor Sir Sadiq Khan to write to the Treasury and ask for vehicle excise duty (VED, or road tax) to incorporate a 'progressive' element that includes the vehicle's weight. If introduced, this would mean SUV-driving families in the UK face being hit with much larger road tax bills. Many SUV drivers already pay £600 for the first five years on new models under the premium car tax fee, which levies more against vehicles worth over £40,000. The standard road tax rate is £195 per year. The motion also asked London councils to look at hiking the cost of parking permits in the capital for SUVs, so as 'to account for pressure they put on road space and local parking spaces'. But critics accused Labour of declaring war on drivers, with AA president Edmund King, saying: 'It is up to Londoners to choose the type of vehicle that best fulfils their needs.'

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store