Charlie Gard: Prime Minister 'totally understands' plight of his desperate parents
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THE tragic situation faced by critically ill baby Charlie Gard has been raised with the Prime Minister.
Ten-month-old Charlie, who has relatives in Inverness-shire, suffers from genetic mitochondrial disease, which saps energy from his muscles.
He has been in intensive care at since October.
Parents Connie Yates and Chris Gard want to take him to the USA for an experimental treatment they believe may improve his condition.
But doctors at Great Ormond Street Hospital, where Charlie is being cared for, disagree.
They say he cannot see, hear, move, cry or swallow and that his life support should be switched off because there is no chance of his condition improving.
Courts in the UK and Europe have agreed.
However, The Pope is reportedly considering giving the terminally ill baby a Vatican passport so he can be treated at its hospital.
And in one of his latest Tweets on social media, the US President Donald Trump said: "We would be delighted to help, if we can do so".
At Prime Minister’s Questions this week, Seema Malhorta, MP for Feltham and Heston, asked Theresa May to “do all she can” to help baby Charlie and his parents.
The MP said: “I understand that the chances of improvement for Charlie are low but the doctors will be able to say within three months whether Charlie is responding and whether that change is clinically beneficial.”
Ms May replied: “I fully understand and appreciate that any parent would want to do everything possible for their seriously ill child. I also know that no doctor ever wants to be in the position where they have to make such heartbreaking decisions.
“I’m confident that Great Ormond Street Hospital has considered, and always will consider, any offers or new information that comes forward."
