Madeleine McCann’s parents have chosen not to apply for a death certificate – despite being entitled to one on the seventh anniversary of her disappearance next weekend.
Kate and Gerry McCann are so encouraged by Scotland Yard’s fresh leads into her disappearance that they will not seek for a Certificate of Presumed Death which applies after that period.
And they are so convinced Madeleine is still alive they are instead stepping up their efforts to find their daughter.
Her gran Susan Healy told the Mirror yesterday: “She could be found.”
And Kate herself has previously said: “Madeleine is still alive until someone proves otherwise.”
A person can legally be declared dead after seven years under British law despite the absence of direct proof of the victim’s death. But friends of the couple, from Rothley, Leics, said that was the “last thing on their minds” as they prepare for next Saturday’s grim milestone.
Their hopes of finding Madeleine, who would now be 10, have been boosted in recent months by the progress of a British police probe.
Scotland Yard detectives are believed to be poised for a breakthrough after their own three-year review that sparked a fresh investigation.
New evidence has come to light of a sex attack on a British girl of 10 in Praia da Luz two years before Madeleine disappeared there. It is one of five new Algarve assaults uncovered by senior British detectives.
Madeleine vanished from her parents’ holiday apartment in the Portuguese resort on May 03, 2007, just nine days short of her fourth birthday.
Despite no confirmed sightings of the youngster since that fateful night, Kate and Gerry cling to the hope she will be found alive.
Former GP Kate has said: “There is nothing to suggest Madeleine is not alive. We have to keep looking for her.
“We still have real hope. We all know cases of missing children, presumed dead and found alive years, sometimes decades, later.”
Kate has told how she had been “buoyed” by the efforts of Met Police and “relieved” the case had been reopened in Portugal.
Family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said last night: “Kate and Gerry are fully aware of the declaration of death. They still believe Madeleine is alive and are not applying for a certificate presuming she is dead. That is the last thing on their minds.”
The Presumption of Death Act, due to be reformed in October following a campaign, is based on a seven-year rule.
A Ministry of Justice spokesman said: “If after seven years a person is still missing and there has been no sight or contact with them, they are presumed dead.
“The family can then apply for a Certificate of Presumed Death from a court which allows them to help resolve that person’s affairs or simply to help give them some closure.
“This can be done without a body being found. No-one can prepare for the heartache and confusion which arises when a loved one disappears with no trace.”
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