April Jones's family launch new petition for law

Parents Coral and Paul Jones, of Machynlleth, hope to attract 100,000 signatures backing April's Law, after struggling to track down the author of a previous petition, which received more than 70,000 signatures.

They say they want to prevent families suffering the "heartache" they did.

The new petition focuses on three main aspects, calling for all sex offenders to remain on the register for life, for service providers and internet search engines to be better policed over images of child abuse, and for harsher sentences for those caught with indecent images of children.

Coral said: "It's been four years and nothing has been done, we're still waiting for April's Law, a law which could help and protect other families and children. April was an innocent five-year-old girl who went through hell, we don't want other families to go through what we went through, that's why we want action now, for April."

The latest petition needs 100,000 signatures before it can be discussed in Parliament, however April's family are hoping those who signed the original petition will sign the new one.

Five-year-old April was murdered by paedophile Mark Bridger after being abducted from outside her home in Machynlleth on October 1, 2012.

Her disappearance sparked the biggest search in UK police history, with officers and members of the public from across the country flocking to the town to offer help.

Bridger, who lived in nearby Ceinws, was given a whole life jail term at Mold Crown Court in May 2013, after being found guilty of the youngster's abduction and murder in what the judge said was a "sexually motivated" attack.

Calls for a restriction on access to child sex abuse images were made by April's mother Coral in 2013, when she met with Prime Minister, David Cameron. Coral said she now wants to set up a meeting with the current Prime Minister Theresa May to discuss April's Law.

* The petition can be viewed at gopetition.com/petitions/aprils-law-uk.html