The police chief at the time Madeleine McCann went missing has defended his decision not to tell the media that leaked DNA evidence implicating her parents was wrong.

Matthew Baggott the then Chief Constable of Leicestershire – now head of the Police Service of Northern Ireland – was interviewed at the Leveson Inquiry into the media yesterday.

The inquiry has previously heard from Jerry Lawton, a Daily Star reporter, that Portuguese police were leaking DNA results wrongly implicating her parents with a hire car.

Lord Justice Leveson yesterday said Mr Lawton criticised the force, which he said knew the leaks were wrong, for not telling reporters off the record "don't go there'' with the hire car details.

The judge said he was concerned the force did not have the chance to respond and asked Mr Baggott if he would like to.

Mr Baggott said the force had to "respect the primacy of the Portuguese investigation".

He said there was also "an issue of Portuguese law, their own judicial secrecy laws".

This meant "it would have been utterly wrong" to have held an off-the-record briefing over the matter.

Madeleine's father Gerry, in his submission to the inquiry in November, told how he had urged Mr Baggott to write to media organisations urging them to stop inaccurately reporting details of the girl's disappearance.

Mr McCann said Mr Baggott, who left the Leicestershire force in 2009, wrote letters in September and October 2007.

"Our campaign team pressurised Leicestershire police to write to the broadcasters and editors and there's a letter from Matt Baggott, who was chief constable at that time, urging restraint and saying there was very inaccurate reporting," Mr McCann said.

Portugal police announced this month that a new team had been appointed to re-examine the original investigation into Madeleine's disappearance.

It follows a review by Scotland Yard officers which began in May last year.

Madeleine disappeared from the family's holiday accommodation in Portuguese resort of Praia de Luz in May 2007. She was a few days short of her fourth birthday at the time.