London - More than £1 million (S$2.5 million) has been spent in the search for missing British toddler Madeleine McCann, her parents said in a newspaper interview published yesterday.

The McCanns have also promised to spend whatever it takes to find their daughter, who vanished from a holiday apartment in Portugal last May, The Daily Mirror said.

Madeleine's disappearance had triggered a hunt that made headlines worldwide.

'It's a lot of money, but we can't set a limit,' said Mrs McCann, 40. 'A child does not have a price. We will pay what we have to.

'It just takes one person to make the one phone call we so hope for. We know she was abducted and believe someone knows or suspects something.

'We want to find her alive. But if she's dead, we want to know.'

The Portuguese authorities have closed their investigation and lifted the 'suspect' label from the McCanns due to lack of evidence.

Mr McCann, also 40, said their other children, three-year-old twins Sean and Amelie, had been vital in helping them cope with daily life.

The couple speak to the twins every day about their missing sister and save sweets for her for when she returns.

'It's only them who make life normal for us. For us personally, it will never be normal again,' he said.

Madeleine disappeared from an apartment in the Algarve resort of Praia da Luz on May 3 last year, days before her fourth birthday, as her parents dined with friends at a nearby restaurant.

Despite a worldwide publicity campaign and the couple hiring their own private investigators, there has been no evidence of the girl's fate or whereabouts since. -- AFP

Is this article useful to you?