Michel Platini has written to the UK's minister for sport Hugh Robertson to express his dismay at the “disgraceful” scenes that followed England Under-21’s win in Serbia last week.

Chris Hughton, the only black manager in the Barclays Premier League, has called for UEFA to be “brave” and order national associations found guilty of racist abuse from supporters to play behind closed doors or be banned.

All Serbia’s players and staff involved in Tuesday night’s hugely controversial UEFA under-21 play-off against England have been asked to make formal statements.

Most of the Portuguese police officers who looked for Madeleine McCann after her disappearance had no formal training in missing people searches, case files revealed today.

Files from the Portuguese police investigation into Madeleine McCann’s disappearance have helped her parents to “draw strength” because of the lack of any evidence that their daughter is dead, the family spokesman said today.

BRITISH forensic analysis produced contradictory results on the key question of whether Madeleine McCann’s DNA was found in her parents’ hire car, according to a leaked Portuguese prosecutors’ report.

CORK and Limerick relatives of Barry George who is accused of murdering TV presenter Jill Dando, will travel to the Old Bailey on June 3, when a retrial ordered by the court of appeal is due to commence.

Prisoners jailed on the strength of a DNA testing technique that is now under review could turn to the appeal courts in a bid to have their convictions quashed, an expert said today.

FORENSIC evidence taken by Portuguese police from scientists in Britain appears to be behind the recent dramatic twists in the Madeleine McCann investigation.

Missing Madeleine McCann’s parents are waiting today to learn whether crucial forensic results will shed new light on what happened to their daughter.

Portuguese police failed to tell the parents of missing Madeleine McCann about a possible forensic breakthrough that could end their agonising wait to learn what happened to their daughter.

A senior Portuguese police officer said detectives investigating Madeleine McCann’s disappearance had a “positive feeling” about the inquiry as they await key DNA test results.

THE hunt for missing Madeleine McCann has entered a “decisive phase”, with an arrest in Britain possible in the coming days.

The English Football Association have sent an official complaint to UEFA following racist abuse directed at England Under-21 players from Serbia fans and players at the European Under-21 Championships.

BRITAIN is launching a database of thousands of shoes and shoe types next month to help track down criminals.

More than 30 prime suspects in long-term unsolved crimes in the UK, mainly rapes, have been identified by using modern DNA analysis, it emerged today.

A SCIENTIFIC breakthrough in DNA profiling brought to justice the murderer of a frail bedridden pensioner in Britain.