Gerry McCann returns from Portugal

Gerry McCann had a "positive" meeting with his Portuguese lawyers about the search for his missing daughter, family spokesman Clarence Mitchell said.

Mr McCann, 40, from Rothley, Leicestershire, said his brief trip to Portugal would be "the first of several" over the next few months. He also indicated a willingness to improve relations with the Portuguese authorities, which were strained after police named him and his wife Kate as suspects in Madeleine's disappearance.

In an interview with news agency Lusa, Mr McCann pledged to work "as much as possible" with officials in Portugal to look for Madeleine.

He went on: "We want to make it absolutely clear what's gone on in the past is, by and large, done and we very, very much want to focus on what can still be done for the search. That's what our priority is and it always has been."

Mr McCann flew into Faro Airport in the Algarve on Tuesday morning and was met by British Embassy officials. He then travelled to Lisbon for talks with his legal team, led by Rogerio Alves, before returning to Britain.

Mr Mitchell said: "He said it was a positive meeting and he is pleased with the way it went."

Madeleine was nearly four when she went missing from her family's holiday apartment in the Algarve village of Praia da Luz on May 3 2007 while her parents dined with friends nearby. Despite a massive police operation and huge publicity worldwide, she has not been found.

Four months after she disappeared, Portuguese police made both Mr and Mrs McCann "arguidos", or formal suspects, in the case. Two days later, on September 9 2007, the couple returned to Britain with their two other children, twins Sean and Amelie.

Last July the Portuguese attorney-general shelved the investigation and lifted the McCanns' arguido status.