ONE of Claudia Lawrence's closest friends and her father have both made emotional appeals for anyone who knows what happened to the missing York chef to finally come forward.

Jen King and Peter Lawrence spoke out at a press conference outside Claudia's home in Heworth to mark the 9th anniversary of her disappearance on March 18, 2009.

Former housemate Jen was distraught as she said in a video message for The Press website: "I would just like to appeal to the person or persons responsible..if they can see that we have waited nine years for an answer, please don't let us wait for ten.

"We are done with waiting and we are done with wondering and being terrified of what has happened to her. We just want to know."

Mr Lawrence said: "Nine years on from Claudia disappearing from here in Heworth - three thousand three hundred days - you, someone in York, knows what happened to Claudia and yet the family are still absolutely devastated by not knowing what happened to her.

"Surely loyalties after all this time can't trump what the family are going through. It's just so painful."

He said Claudia had not disappeared of her own accord, because she left her house without her handbag, jewellery, bank card and driving licence, and she would never do this unless she was just going to work.

He also spoke of his frustration about delays in bringing in 'Claudia's Law' - amendments to guardianship legislation which will make it easier for the families of people missing for more than 90 days to deal with their personal and financial affairs.

He said he had been trying to get legislation through Parliament to enable families like his - and there were 2,500 of them - to be able to look after their loved one's financial affairs.

"We finally got guardianship and missing person's legislation through Parliament last May and I am now told that it may not be enforced for another year," he said.

"The civil servants who have been doing the secondary legislation have been diverted to other things and it's just not good enough.

"Yes, there's Brexit happening but people still have to live, people are still suffering, and I have written to the Lord Chancellor, and Kevin Hollinrake, the MP who took the Act through, has also written to the Lord Chancellor with no response.

"There are so many people suffering - almost losing houses, some of them suffering financially as well as emotionally, and I just can't stress enough how important that is."

Claudia was 35 when she was reported missing on March 19, 2009, after she failed to turn up for a shift at work at the University of York.

A massive police investigation eventually resulted in four men being arrested on suspicion of murder but no one was ever charged, and police now have a largely 'reactive' role in relation to the case.

Her mother Joan said last week she had existed in a “dark hole” since her disappearance.