Cameron in tribute to father of missing chef Claudia Lawrence

PRIME Minister David Cameron has paid tribute to the efforts of Claudia Lawrence’s father to overhaul the law to help families resolve the legal affairs of missing relatives.

Mr Cameron acknowledged the “emotional and practical difficulties” faced by families whose loved ones had vanished when he was asked about the issue during Prime Minister’s Questions today.

The Conservative MP for Selby and Ainsty, Nigel Adams, is a personal friend of Miss Lawrence’s father, Peter, 65, from York, and called on the Prime Minister to back proposed new legislation.

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Mr Cameron claimed the Government will consider “very carefully” a series of recommendations drawn up by the Justice Select Committee.

He added: “I think this is an important issue he raises and I pay tribute to Peter Lawrence and his support for this campaign [with the charity] Missing People. The Justice Select Committee has made an important report on this issue. We acknowledge the present law is complicated. I recognise all the emotional and practical difficulties faced by those whose loved ones are missing.”

The committee’s report was published last month and stated a single certificate declaring someone “presumed dead” should be brought in to help families resolve a missing person’s legal affairs. The committee claimed the current law is a “crazy paving” of different provisions which leaves families facing a “confusing, costly and emotionally-exhausting legal process” while dealing with mortgages, debts and maintenance payments.

Miss Lawrence was 35 when she was last seen near her York home on March 18, 2009, and North Yorkshire Police detectives have failed to find any trace of her. The missing person inquiry was upgraded to a murder investigation the month after she vanished.