Nicola Bulley – latest: Father hopes for ‘breakthrough’ three weeks after dog walker’s disappearance

Nicola Bulley’s family “just need a breakthrough to give us some hope”, her father has said.

Speaking to Sky News, Ernie Bulley said that “every day is a struggle”, adding: “[We’re] no further on from three weeks ago.

“[We] just need a breakthrough to give us some hope.”

Here is a clip of Mr Bulley speaking to the broadcaster in the first week of the search:

It is “disappointing” that home secretary Suella Braverman did not express her “concerns” over the police’s handling of Nicola Bulley’s case to the local police and crime commissioner, the former head of Greater Manchester Police has said.

Sir Peter Fahy told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think it’s disappointing she didn’t approach the police and crime commissioner about that, who is the locally elected person to oversee policing in Lancashire.

“I’ve not seen any criticism of the fact that Lancashire Police have been very, very diligent in tracing lots of witnesses and eyewitnesses, mobile phone data, huge use of CCTV.

“That itself has closed off many potential theories about what has happened to this poor woman.”

A dog walker who found Nicola Bulley’s mobile phone on a bench before she had been reported missing has claimed that he “knew something wasn’t right”, my colleague Jane Dalton reports.

The man, identified only as Ron, thought when he first spotted the phone that someone had left it there while they had gone to relieve themselves nearby.

He had been walking beside the river in St Michael’s on Wyre, Lancashire, close to the spot where the mother of two disappeared on the morning of 27 January.

But Ron said that when it became clear that nobody was returning to the mobile, he picked it up, at around 9.35am, and saw a wallpaper image flash up showing Ms Bulley with her partner, Paul Ansell.

Ms Bulley, originally from Essex but now resident in Inskip, was heading east along the River Wyre in Lancashire with her brown springer spaniel Willow when she vanished near St Michael’s on Wyre at approximately 9.15am on Friday 27 January.

She was seen by at least one fellow dog walker moments before disappearing.

Joe Sommerlad has a brief overview of the information released so far as the investigation continues:

Nicola Bulley’s disappearance continues to confound police and public three weeks after the mortgage broker vanished in Lancashire.

Neighbours of Nicola Bulley have had to beef up their security because amateur detectives are snooping into people’s homes.

Lancashire Police has repeatedly asked people outside of the village of Saint Michael’s on Wyre not to visit to conduct their own searches after the 45-year-old mother disappeared on January 27.

But Wyre Council leader Michael Vincent said villagers, particularly older residents, have been left “terrified” as vigilantes complete DIY probes. He said that they had even resorted to employing private security firms in a bid to protect their privacy.

William Mata reports:

Images capture police search teams on the banks of the River Wyre in Hambleton, Lancashire, as officers continue their search for missing woman Nicola Bulley.

We take a look at a timeline of the case as the search continues: