The Leveson Inquiry: Crone, Myler and Sanderson give evidence

12 Oct 08 528
First of all I want to apologise for not updating this blog for so long. I would like to assure everyone that this gap is not because there is little going on in the search for Madeleine. On the contrary, Kate and I have been incredibly busy over the last couple of months since the PJ files were made public. We and our family have always vowed to leave no stone unturned in the search for our daughter and knowing exactly what has been done and, more importantly, what has not been done is vital in planning our future strategy.

Getting the files translated accurately is a time consuming and expensive process but essential to our search. There is a huge amount of information contained within the files which we have not been party to until now and this needs to be assessed carefully. This is even more important as the Portuguese investigation is officially closed.

In some ways, although this task is monumental, it has been good for us doing being something active and positive which we believe may help find Madeleine. We are also using this period to get advice to maximise our effectiveness and efficiency in our overall strategy going forward. Keeping Madeleine's image in the public eye will continue to be important and the distribution of posters is central to that aim.

Many people have also asked us what is happening with the Amber alert after the successful adoption of the written declaration by the European Parliament. It has been relatively quiet due to the summer recess but hopefully the momentum gained, added to the desire of the European Commission to for an Amber Alert system, will affect change in the near future.

Finally we would like to thank everyone for their continued, support, prayers and letters. I promise to do another update in the near future. We will be looking at how the website functions, as the main portal of the find Madeleine campaign, and perhaps future updates will be via another route rather than my blog. Why don't you let us know what you think by e-mail messages of support?

17 Oct 08 533
Most of you will have seen yesterday that our seven friends, who were on holiday with us in Portugal when Madeleine was abducted, have been awarded libel damages. The Express group of newspapers admitted that many of the stories written about our friends were completely untrue and without foundation. They have apologised and paid £375,000 in to Madeleine's Fund. This money will be put to good use for the ongoing search for our beautiful little girl.

Our friends were under no obligation to pay the damages in to the fund. However they have from day one indicated that this was what they wanted and have clearly demonstrated that finding Madeleine is of the utmost importance to them. They, like us, believe there is a very good chance Madeleine is alive and can be found. Thank you Fiona, David, Russell, Jane, Matt, Rachael and Diane.

We would also like to thank our friends in Portugal. They continue to hold a monthly Friday night vigil in Praia da Luz vigil to pray for Madeleine and other missing children, like so many others around the world.

09 Nov 08 556 A difficult week for Kate and me ended on a positive note last night. Monday was the 3rd of November- 18 months since Madeleine was so cruelly taken from us. We do not usually put a lot of store in specific milestones - these being just another day without Madeleine. This week was unusual in that both Kate and I were feeling low at the same time, which is an uncommon occurrence, and we can usually rely on one of us lifting the other.

We continue to work very hard behind the scenes. Our support team has been expanded as we try to identify what has been done, what has not been done and what can still be done to help find Madeleine. We are not yet halfway through the Portuguese files but there is less information within the files than we were expecting. As I have stated many times, someone has a key bit of information that can unlock this frustratingly difficult and painful situation.

Yesterday we went through to Liverpool for a Race Night organised by the Greenhills Taverners Society- a group who organise fundraising events for local good causes- along with family and friends. On this occasion all proceeds were going towards Madeleines Fund. Around 200 people turned up and everyone enjoyed a good night. Liverpool and Everton donated signed shirts which were auctioned and with tickets and a raffle around £2000 has been raised. A taxi driver, taking home some of our friends, even got in to the spirit of things by donating his fare to the fund. Well done everyone and thanks for all the messages of support prayers- we left Liverpool in much better spirits than when we arrived!
10 Nov 08 557 Correction to my entry last night. After adding all the money up the total raised at the race night was actually £5000! Well done everyone in Liverpool.