A day of reflection for father of missing Claudia Lawrence after eight years

Miss Lawrence, a chef at York University, was 35 when she went missing on her way to a 6am shift at work on March 18, 2009.

Earlier this year, following a lengthy North Yorkshire Police investigation, prosecutors refused to charge four men suspected of her murder.

Speaking ahead of the eighth anniversary of Miss Lawrence’s disappearance, Martin Dales, spokesman for her father Peter Lawrence, said: “All anniversaries of Claudia’s disappearance are painful times for her family and friends and this year is no exception.

“Claudia’s father Peter Lawrence will be spending this weekend quietly and reflectively.”

Mr Lawrence will mark the eighth anniversary on March 24, when the report stage and third reading of the Guardianship (Missing Persons) Bill takes place in the House of Commons.

The Bill, dubbed Claudia’s Law, will create a new legal status of guardian of the property and affairs of anyone missing for 90 days or more, allowing families and friends of missing people to manage their affairs.

The Bill was introduced to Parliament by Thirsk and Malton MP Kevin Hollinrake.

In January, the Crown Prosecution Service ruled that there is “insufficient evidence” to prove any of the men arrested by North Yorkshire Police in 2016 had anything to do with Miss Lawrence going missing in March 2009.

A spokesman for Peter Lawrence said at the time that the decision meant the new investigation into his daughter’s disappearance had turned out to be “another false dawn in an already forlorn situation”.

Detective Superintendent Dai Malyn of North Yorkshire Police, said his two-and-a-half-year investigation, was “compromised by the reluctance of some, and refusal of others, to co-operate with police enquiries”.