British police reveal £745,000 bill

British police have now spent nearly £750,000 looking into the disappearance of Madeleine McCann, it emerged today. The new figure follows revelations earlier this year that Leicestershire police´s part in the search for the missing girl amounted to £548,477 in 2007-08. Today the force said that the costs for 2008-09 had added £196,756 to that sum, taking the total to £745,233. Some of the cost has been reimbursed by a Home Office grant to £525,069. In February, when the original figures were released, the Home Office said if a local police force had to incur extra costs for a government event, its authority could ask for "special grant support" from the home secretary. Family spokesman, Mr. Clarence Mitchell said: "The police keep Kate and Gerry informed as when appropriate, and let them know of any movement o the case, and Kate and Gerry are grateful to them". The couple say that until they are given clear evidence to the contrary, they will to believe Madeleine is alive. They continue their search.

If you want more information, please, go to:

BBC News: Madeleine police costs increase.

Guardian.co.uk: British police reveal £745,000 bill for Madeleine McCann hunt.

The Press Association: Madeleine hunt cost police £745,000.

Daily Mail: Madeleine McCann search has cost British police £750,000.

Leicester Mercury: Madeleine search has cost police £750,000.

I dont think personally that money is an issue here at all.

The couple say that until they are given clear evidence to the contrary, they will to believe Madeleine is alive. They continue their search.

As long as there is a possibility that Madeleine is alive then money is just money.

Exactly. What price the life of a child?

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I agree with Mod and Vee´s posts.

Pedro Silva wrote:I agree with Mod and Vee´s posts.

So do I, one can never put a price on a child's head, 'any' child!

Amaral is making money off of Madeleine's back and so is Tony Bennett, perhaps they could give a donation out of their 'ill gotten gains?' I despise them, the pair of them for cashing in on an innocent child and no one is going to change my mind, they are a pair of despicable runts, in my opinion.

Equally, there are a couple of people that KNOW what happened to Madeleine McCann and they could bring this all to an end, here now, today, but they are too scared of reprisals!

But they needn't think they will get away with it, they wont, it will come out and very soon too!

Amaral, you understand that do you?

People always gasp and whine about these kinds of announcements, but that is why the Home Office is helping out. All major crimes cost a lot of money, let alone complicated and drawn out investigations such as this one, with a young missing child. It's just dumb luck unfortunately which local jurisdiction the crime happens to happen in. Isn't this exactly kind of issues that our tax dollars should cover?

How much did the Yorkshire police spend in the 'disappearance' of Shannon Matthews????? ....... and she wasn't even missing!!!!!

I may be wrong but I dont think the public cares about the cost of an investigation, regardless if it is for a missing child, or to hunt a serial killer, or even a conman like Bernie Madoff.

What the public dont like is wasting money on long lunches, unnecessary travel and expenses, more spent on admin staff than investigative staff, basically wasting of money.

The public wants public saftey and an expectation that they will be treated fairly under the law. That means that the resources of the police are put to use in investigations, and not dropped because of cost cutting exercises.

As for Karen Matthews, she and her accomplice should be forced to pay back the bill for the missing child part of the investigation to the police. Trouble is, there is no money to be had.

Nobody begrudges the cost of investigating legitimate crime, particularly when it comes to crimes against children. And in this I believe Britain, Australia and the US are all in agreement. Mad idiots over at 3A's are the only exceptions.

No money in the world is badly used, when the subject is a child who can still be out there alive, somewhere (until evidence otherwise, this can still happen), waiting to be found, to be safely returned to her parents where she really belongs. The same about all missing children worldwide).

On the subject of the public purse and the cost of investigations etc. This is just media hype, they do it all of the time, if they didn't sensationalise it, no one would take much notice of it. It is only us that take notice of it because we know it is going to be seized upon by some and mischief made out of it!

Can you imagine it if the police did nothing, spent no or very little money and then it is revealed that if they had spent money on the investigation a child that had been abducted could have been found and returned home and as a result of penny pinching, they were not? There would then be a public outcry! This is just flim-flam nonsense a non story.

It takes money to mount an investigation, whether we like it or not, all investigations carry enormous costs, I know this is true in Portugal as well as here. But if Portugal want tourists then they have to accept that when things happen involving tourists, then Portugal's law enforcement agencies will be deployed and of course they cost!