Her parents Kate, 51, and Gerry, 50, are said to be concerned that the Metropolitan Police’s latest bid for £300,000 from the Home Office may be rejected. Senior officers put in a request several weeks ago for enough extra cash to keep Operation Grange going until the end of March next year. But last night no decision had been made – although the Met stressed inquiries were still “ongoing”.

Madeleine was aged three when she vanished from her parents’ holiday apartment in Praia da Luz on the Algarve in May 2007.

The McCanns were having dinner with friends a short distance away and raised the alarm when they went to check on her and their twins Sean and Amelie, then aged two.

The investigation was launched in 2011 after the McCanns made a personal appeal to Prime Minister David Cameron.

At its height, more than 30 detectives were working to solve the riddle of Madeleine’s disappearance.

But the scale of the operation was dramatically scaled back in 2015 and only a handful of officers are now working on the case.

Based in an anonymous west London office block, the detectives are believed to be tracing and eliminating paedophiles known to be in the Praia da Luz area at the time.

The painstaking but unspectacular work has led to speculation that real leads have dried up.

“Most of what Operation Grange is doing is having things set up to knock down and rule out, rather than pursuing a particular fantastic lead that could unlock it all,” one source said.

“I’m not aware of any earth-shattering lead or breakthrough imminently.” One recent line of inquiry is believed to have centred on a Bulgarian couple who were suspected to be child traffickers.

Detectives were told the pair were in the area at the time of the disappearance.

Inquiries established the man had died but the woman was still alive. Efforts to trace her have so far drawn a blank, it is believed.

Operation Grange has so far cost £11.75million, with more than £10million being spent on salaries.

More than £440,000 has gone on overtime and about £287,000 on travel costs although officers have not been seen in Praia da Luz for months.

Money for Operation Grange comes from what the Home Office calls Special Grant.

Amid a crisis over police resources, some observers have questioned why so much has been spent on the hunt.

A spokesman for the McCanns said they “remain incredibly grateful to the Metropolitan Police and the Home Office for the continued work they are doing”.

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