Kate and Gerry McCann's belief their daughter Madeleine is still alive has been "reinforced" after a 10-day police search in Portugal found no traces of the missing child.
The couple, of Rothley, spoke today after British and Portuguese police officers completed searches of three areas of land in the Algarve resort from which Madeleine went missing in May 2007.
In a statement issued today, the couple said: "We are very pleased that significant activity has taken place in Praia da Luz over the last 10 days with police officers and support teams from the UK working closely with the Policia Judicial and the Guarda Nacional Republicana.
"We are further encouraged that, despite the intensive searches, no trace of Madeleine has been found and this reinforces our belief that she could still be alive.
"As parents of a missing child, we have always wanted all reasonable lines of inquiry to be followed and it is gratifying to know that a substantial amount of work will take place over the coming months with close cooperation of the British and Portuguese authorities.
"We would like to thank all those involved for their efforts and the members of the public who have come forward with information."
Yesterday, the search for Madeleine McCann moved to a third piece of land within walking distance of the Praia da Luz apartment from which Madeleine went missing.
Officers yesterday used bolt croppers to open gates to a piece of land in the resort.
Earlier in the day, officers completed an examination of another nearby piece of land.
The BBC reported that the third search area included a plot of land with vegetables growing in the middle and a number of dilapidated outbuildings around it.
It is the third site to be searched since British police officers returned to Portugal last week.
Last week, British and Portuguese officers completed a search of a nearby 15 acre area of scrubland.
Officers have used sniffer dogs and radar equipment which can detected disturbed ground throughout the operation.
