Maddie's parents are 'innocent victims'

Kate and Gerry McCann's new spokesman said today he had given up his Government job to help the "innocent victims of a heinous crime".

Former BBC reporter Clarence Mitchell, who worked in the Cabinet Office, said: "I am extremely grateful to Kate and Gerry for asking me to return to become their official spokesman.

"When the proposal was put to me with the full support of the legal team and their financial backers, I had absolutely no hesitation in accepting it.

He said he had to give up his job because his position in the Civil Service working with the Government became untenable "from the moment I accepted the role".

He said: "To speak on their behalf, therefore, I have resigned from my role as director of the Central Office of Information's media monitoring unit within the Cabinet Office in Whitehall.

"More importantly, I have done so because I feel so strongly that they are innocent victims of a heinous crime that I am prepared to forego my career in Government service to assist them.

"Therefore, I wish to stress that from now on I am in no way speaking on behalf of the British Government."

The case against the McCanns appeared to be weakening today after a Portuguese judge refused to order Mrs McCann to return to Portugal for questioning.