THE parents of missing
Madeleine
McCann were "delighted" yesterday as police announced plans to put
the whole of Britain on alert if a child is abducted.
Kate and Gerry,
both 41, have
campaigned for the public emergency system - which could see radio and
TV shows interrupted - since their daughter vanished in 2007.
The
Child Response Alert would see a youngster's description and information
such as a suspect's car registration flash up on motorway boards in an
appeal for help. Details could eventually be sent to millions of mobile
phones.
A
similar system in the US has saved 400 kids in the past seven years - 80
per cent within 72 hours of being snatched.
Yesterday, the McCanns said: "We are delighted and relieved that this
system is being introduced. The first hours after a child goes missing
are crucial."
Madeleine - now six - vanished from a holiday complex in Praia da
Luz, Portugal.
Her
parents, of Rothley, Leics, saw the US Amber Alert system on a trip to
Washington. It is named after nine-year-old Amber Hagerman, who was
abducted and murdered in Texas in 1996.
Kate
and Gerry went to Brussels to beg the EU for a UK version. Some 100,000
kids a year are reported missing in Britain, but most are found quickly.
The
alert system - which will link to police in Europe - would only be used
in a few cases where a child is believed to have been kidnapped and in
danger.
It will
launch on May 25 -
International
Missing Children's Day - and be co-ordinated by the National Police
Improvement Agency.
NPIA
Chief Constable Peter Neyroud called it a "powerful tool" which will
bring together police, media and the public within hours.
He
said: "These are often vital hours which could mean the difference
between life and death."
a.lazzeri@the-sun.co.uk |