The family of Archie Battersbee have been told that his life support will be switched off at 10am on Saturday, campaign group Christian Concern have said.
It comes after Archie’s parents, Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee, lost a High Court appeal to move their son to a hospice, with doctors explaining that moving the 12-year-old would pose a “considerable risk”. The Court of Appeal confirmed shortly after 6.30pm on Friday that permission to appeal had been refused.
Following the ruling, Christian Concern, an advocacy group supporting the family, announced that Archie’s legal team had applied to the European Court of Human Rights again to challenge the High Court, The Mirror reports . The ECHR has previously refused to intervene in Archie's case, saying in a statement on Wednesday that it "would not interfere" with the decisions of UK courts concerning the withdrawal of life support treatment.
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Barts Health NHS Trust said in response that its position remained the same in that no changes will be made to the boy’s care “until the outstanding legal issues are resolved”. Archie has been at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel since April after suffering a brain injury.
A judge ruled on Monday that Archie’s life support could be turned off, with doctors treating him saying that he is brain-stem dead and that life support is not in his best interests. Judges at the Supreme Court said that they have “great sympathy” with Archie’s parents, but added that there is “no prospect of any meaningful recovery”.
Parents Hollie and Paul have been fighting a lengthy legal battle to keep their son’s life support switched on. Mum Hollie said on Wednesday: “I promised Arch, same with his dad, that we will fight ’til the bitter end, and that’s exactly what we’re going to do. We’re going to fight for the right for my son to live.”
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