Bond that gets Kate and Gerry through ordeal

It was heartbreaking to read in your paper last week how Kate McCann will buy a present for her daughter Madeleine’s 14th birthday, even though the girl has been missing for ten years. ‘I couldn’t not… she’s still our daughter, she’ll always be our daughter,’ she said.

The torment this couple have been through in the past decade must have been horrendous. What I take from the whole saga is how important marriage is. Kate and Gerry have an unshakeable bond and we can see how they have helped each other through the troubling years. It has helped them to be the brave couple they are.

Their story goes to show how a good marriage can get you through virtually anything. And may they stay strong together for many years to come – and not just for the sake of their other two children; for their own good too. Stephen Carleton, London

You reported last week that £11million has been spent on trying to find Madeleine McCann. What I want to know is why a DNA record is not kept for every missing person’s family, with the police able to check it. My nephew is missing. His parents have to endure police coming to their house every few years asking for DNA because they have found a body that ‘might’ be their son. If there were a record, the parents wouldn’t have to go through the heartache of having to wait three weeks each time for the results.

If it’s shortage of cash that stops DNA of missing people’s families being kept on computer, then it makes me slightly perplexed that so much is spent on one missing child, when this huge amount of money could go to help others. Ryan Roberts, Llanarmon-yn-Ial, North Wales

It’s hard to imagine what Kate and Gerry McCann have been through with the abduction of Maddie. To have a beloved child taken from you must be heartbreaking. I admire their stoicism and pray she is found soon, safe and well. Nick Fletcher, Malton, North Yorkshire

Watching the film Manchester By The Sea recently, I found myself thinking of the Madeleine McCann story. The film hinges on how one mistake can have devastating consequences. There is no doubt the disappearance of Madeleine will haunt the McCanns for the rest of their lives and, similarly, the film shows how grief never leaves you. But it also shows how you can move on with your life, albeit haltingly. I hope Kate and Gerry can find some happiness in the future. It must have been very elusive for the past decade. James Benn, London