The parents of Madeleine McCann fear that the hunt for their missing daughter is grinding to a halt as their funds to maintain the search dry up.
Madeleine was three when she went missing from her family's holiday flat in Praia da Luz, Portugal, on 3 May 2007 as her parents dined with friends nearby.
Gerry and Kate McCann, both 42, said that the Find Madeleine Fund was running low and would last only until spring, after which they would no longer be able to pay private investigators.
"When the money runs out we will not be able to pay the investigators helping us to find Madeleine," Kate McCann told the Sun. "It will be just me and Gerry left looking for her. I just can't contemplate that."
The fund has fallen from £2m at its peak to £300,000. The couple have sent letters to public figures asking for money to continue the search for their daughter. They are convinced Madeleine is alive and are angry they are not receiving more help from the authorities.
"There's no evidence that Madeleine is not out there alive," said Kate McCann. "It's just heartbreaking to think that nothing is getting done other than what we are having to do, other than our small team." The couple are urging the public to support their call for a full case review of Madeleine's disappearance by signing an online petition.
"We need action, I don't need fluffy worthless words. We need somebody to do something," said Kate McCann.
"Madeleine is still missing, she's a little girl, her abductor is still out there, so by not carrying on we are putting other children at risk. I think more needs to be done."
Gerry McCann said: "Essentially for the last three and a half years the authorities have not been doing anything proactive to help Madeleine. That is despite our best efforts to encourage them to do so. I don't think it's right that the onus should fall on us – the authorities really should be doing more."
The couple, from Rothley, Leicestershire, have met former home secretaries Alan Johnson and Jacqui Smith, as well as the current home secretary, Theresa May, to discuss the issue and to push for a review of the case.
Portuguese police launched a huge investigation with the support of British officers after Madeleine went missing, but the inquiry was formally shelved in July 2008 without reaching any firm conclusions about her fate.
A Home Office spokesman said May was "deeply sympathetic" to the couple's situation. "The government wants to ensure that everything feasible is being done to progress the search for Madeleine," he said.
"The British authorities will maintain a dialogue with the Portuguese and continue to liaise with Madeleine's family on any developments."
