Code Madeleine Campaign
Ross Hall in Praia da Luz
19 August 2007
The News of the World
MUM LEFT IN TORMENT
MISSING tot Madeleine McCann's anguished parents are finally about to make the heartbreaking move home.
With still no clues to the four-year-old's disappearance 108 days ago, Kate and Gerry McCann have decided to return to Britain-for the sake of their two-year old twins.
For more than three months they have stayed in Praia da Luz, the resort where Maddie was snatched from their holiday apartment, driving on the desperate hunt for her.
Dad Gerry has always said it would be easier to run things from the UK. But distraught mum Kate stood firm, saying she felt close to her lost daughter in Portugal. Now friends say the couple are making arrangements to tear themselves away-and return home to Rothley, Leicestershire, next month.
The family are renting a villa close to where Madeleine was taken. But its lease runs out in mid-September.
They have been reluctant to use any of the Pounds 1 million donated to the Find Madeleine fund and have had to use their savings to pay rent and mortgage.
Shattered Kate, 39, has told close pals she fears she will never be able to return to her work as a GP.
And with Gerry on unpaid leave from his post as a heart consultant, they are finding it hard to cope financially. A family friend said last night: "Gerry and Kate are coming to terms with the fact they can't keep twins Sean and Amelie here for ever. It seems like the right time to go.
"They are slowly realising going home doesn't mean they're giving up on Maddie."
Earlier this week Kate said: "We know we'll be going back and I guess one day we'll wake up and it will be right. We never thought we'd go before Madeleine came back."The family's decision comes after Portuguese police admitted they have no idea what happened on the night Maddie disappeared.
Meanwhile, Code Madeleine, our ground-breaking initiative to find children abducted on holiday, continues to win worldwide approval.
The six-point plan ensures rapid action in the vital first hours after a child disappears. It is backed by British travel industry chiefs-and now top timeshare firms have adopted it, too.
FOR more details on Code Madeleine and our Pounds 1.5m reward offer go to notw.co.uk
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