Portuguese police fear British detectives will give Kate and Gerry McCann an easy ride when they are questioned again over Madeleine's disappearance.
The Portuguese authorities have prepared a formal request for the couple and their holiday friends to be re-interviewed by officers in Leicestershire. However, Policia Judiciaria sources believe their UK counterparts will fail to put the McCanns under any pressure.
Portuguese detectives believe the interviews are their last hope of cracking the case after forensic evidence proved inconclusive.
They told Portuguese newspaper 24 Horas that the fate of the inquiry hinged entirely on the competence of the British police in extracting information from the group.
Yesterday it emerged that it is unlikely police will be able to question the McCanns before Christmas. The Portuguese "letters of appeal", which detail questions detectives want put to the couple, had been due to be sent this week, but have been held up by red tape.
They must go before a judge in Portugal before being translated and sent to Home Secretary Jacqui Smith and then on to the police. (Daily Mail)
