George Hepburne Scott Comments in The Independent and The Mirror on Extradition Challenges in Madeleine McCann Case

 George Hepburne Scott has provided comment in The Independent and The

Mirror on the challenges in extraditing the prime suspect in the

Madeleine McCann case, German citizen Christian Brueckner, to the UK to

face trial.

"Because he is a German citizen, Germany is highly unlikely to extradite

him to the UK. Under the German Basic Law and the post-Brexit EU-UK

Trade and Cooperation Agreement, Germany can refuse to surrender its own

nationals, and in practice it does. If there is sufficient evidence, the

realistic route is for Germany to prosecute him domestically rather than

hand him over."

"Pre Brexit the extradition would have been streamlined, fast-tracked

and effectively automatic - subject to routine procedural requirements."

George's comments were published in The Independent, 6 May 2026, and The

Mirror, 10 May 2026.