The McCann family Parent Demands Tougher Press Regulation Amid Accounts of Media "Tormenting".

Gerry McCann, father to Madeleine McCann has issued a call for more robust scrutiny of the UK media, describing how sustained media attention made him feel that he was being "drowning under the pressure".

A Family Subjected to Press "Abuses"

According to Gerry McCann, his family was deeply affected by press "abuses" and that the media had "consistently hampered" the search for answers regarding his daughter's disappearance in 2007.

He stated that the intrusion took a "huge toll" on his family. "We faced constant scrutiny and inaccurate reports for 15 months or more that compelled us to take legal action to stop it," he explained.

"We were fortunate. We survived. We had strong support. But I can promise you, there were times where I felt like I was drowning, and it was the media, mostly, not the situation we were in," he reflected.

An Appeal for Revive Press Regulation Review

McCann and his wife, Kate, are among more than 30 people who have signed a letter calling on ministers to restart the second phase of the Leveson inquiry, which was intended to examine the dynamic between the media and the police.

McCann said it was not acceptable that more than a year on, press regulation was "no longer a priority". He described how his family had been endured "relentless targeting" by sections of the media and that the press was "posted" outside his home for months after Madeleine went missing.

Recounting the Intrusion

Detailing the events, he said: "Media at our doorstep, photographers literally ramming their cameras against our car window, when we had two-year-old twins in the back who were terrified, and how upsetting that is for you as a parent."

"It's the half-truths. It's the invention of stories to drive a headline, rather than the facts, which ruins lives," he added.

A Demand for Stronger Regulation and Accountability

He argued this behavior showed why there needed to be more robust press regulation. "In the evenings, we'd put on the news, and there'd be major reports about ourselves and what supposedly happened," he told.

"That can drag you down, and you can see how people give in to it and think they can't get out of it. It's so damaging, and we need that protection. There has to be redress. And at the minute, for most of the major publishers, there is no effective recourse," he concluded.

Government Response and Changing Media Landscape

The Culture Secretary stated that a second phase of the inquiry had been rejected and that the news environment was now very different.

"We agree that the situation has changed profoundly since the Leveson's second phase was proposed: the public is now more likely to get their news online from a whole variety of sources, which has created new and different challenges," they explained.

The minister further stated that weighing the needs of those affected with the need for a free press was a "challenging task to get right," but acknowledged that "reform is required in this area".

A Continued Search for Closure

Madeleine McCann disappeared from a family vacation apartment in 2007 at the age of three. Gerry McCann said that it was "profoundly disappointing" how the press had consistently meddled with the investigation.

"Leaked information which should have been confidential... This meant a potential culprit, you knew far more than you should have done," he noted.

On the prospect of finding Madeleine, he said the possibility he would find his daughter was "faint yet persistent". "We hope to find her alive, but we need to establish the facts and hold the perpetrator, and other children are at risk while whoever is responsible is free," he affirmed.