Police today gathered in Praia da Luz and then moved with their geo-radar equipment and sniffer dogs to a search area overlooking the holiday resort.
Two dozen officers from Portugal’s Judicial Police and Britain’s Scotland Yard were outnumbered by three dozen members of the press, eager to cover the story that has been running since 2007.
The police presence does mark a beginning of a new phase in the search for Madeleine McCann whose disappeared seven years ago appears to have left police in both countries as baffled as when they started the investigation.
The Portuguese and British police now at last are working in parallel, ending a frustrating and long-running impasse.
The British police team arrived with technical kit and sniffer dogs. Any excavations at the large area of scrubland will be carried out under temporary tents to prevent photographs.
The land which is to be searched is about 100 metres from the beach and 300 metres from the apartment where the McCanns were staying. The land is used by walkers and is accessible despite being owned by a company.
The Portuguese police are to act as observers while the British police use their equipment to look for clues.
Madeleine McCann disappeared in May 2007 from the room where she slept with her younger siblings at an apartment in Praia da Luz in the Algarve. Her parents were eating out nearby.
