Rose Polge missing: Search for junior doctor scaled back a week after she went missing

'We are scaling back the search and at the moment there is no structured search going on,' says South Devon police commander

A week has passed since junior doctor was sighted but police have scaled back search (PA)

Police have scaled back the search for missing junior doctor Rose Polge a week after she was last seen.

There has been no sighting or trace of the 25-year-old since her car was found in a car park near Ansteys Cove in Devon on February 12.

South Devon police commander Supt Glen Mayhew said: “We are scaling back the search and at the moment there is no structured search going on.

“There will still be intermittent shore line searches taking place.”

Until Wednesday, officers from across South Devon, as well as police diving groups and the police helicopter had been searching the shoreline.

A hooded top was found washed ashore but there has been no police confirmation that it is related to the disappearance.

The family and boyfriend of Polge, along with 100 other people have joined the search around Ansteys Cove.

The junior doctor left a note in her car which reportedly referred to Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt. Contrary to some early reports, The Independent understands the note left by Polge was not addressed to Hunt, though it does mention him in passing.

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police refused to confirm or deny the existence of a note. He said: “We are not going to make any comment on a note or the contents of it.”

Polge, who has not been sighted since she went missing halfway through a hospital shift, was a campaigner against plans to change working hours and conditions for junior doctors.

Last week, Hunt confirmed the government would go ahead and impose a new contract on junior doctors in England.

Police said Polge’s disappearance was “totally out of character” and fear for her welfare was growing.