Archie Battersbee’s parents send letter to Health Secretary urging him to help keep their son alive

Archie Battersbee’s parents have begged the Health Secretary to stop an NHS hospital despite a last-minute order from the United Nations, which has ruled that his life support should not be turned off.

The 12-year-old boy’s father and mother, Hollie Dance and Paul Battersbee, have asked the United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNRPD) to overturn the decision by UK doctors to withdraw the mechanical intervention. .

His family has argued that stopping treatment would violate the UK’s obligations under Articles 10 and 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Article 6 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. .

Their wish was granted Friday night with an 11-hour legal order preventing the relocation of Archie’s care being invoked by the international organization.

But Barts Health NHS Trust, the health body now tasked with looking after the boy, was accused today of threatening to shut down the boy’s life support system on Monday afternoon despite the intervention.

The Christian Legal Centre, a legal firm that supported Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee’s appeal, revealed the couple had sent an urgent letter to Health Secretary Steve Barclay asking him to stop the termination of care. take care of their son.

The government has yet to respond to the UN order issued more than 24 hours ago.

Paul Battersbee and Hollie Dancing outside the Royal Courts of Justice in London last Friday. The ‘devastated’ couple have lost battles at both the High Court and the Court of Appeal in London, where they asked doctors to continue treating Archie Battersbee

Doctors have been allowed to turn off Archie’s life support, but his parents are trying to continue the fight to keep him alive. Pictured is Archie in the hospital

In their letter, Archie’s parents Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee begged Health Secretary Steve Barclay to intervene to prevent the ‘extraordinary cruelty’ of ending their son’s life.

In their letter, Ms Dance and Mr Battersbee begged the Health Secretary to intervene to prevent the ‘extraordinary cruelty’ of ending their son’s life.

The entire letter reads: ‘Dear Mr Barclay, you will be aware of the terrible tragedy our family is going through since our son Archie suffered severe brain damage in April as a result of a trial. online challenge is wrong.

‘We are grateful to the doctors and nurses at Royal London Hospital for the treatment and care of Archie over the past four months.

‘However, I regret to say that during all that time our pain and suffering was greatly exacerbated by the actions of two or three senior doctors at the hospital and management by Barts Health NHS Trust.

‘From day one, the family as well as the treating doctors have been under daily pressure from the Trust to give up Archie, withdraw life support medication and let him die. After only three weeks, we were dragged to Court a few hours before notice.

‘Since then, during these three months, we’ve been rushing from court to court every few days, fighting for Archie’s life in front of an army of lawyers and regulators. The NHS is generously funded.

‘During these months, we were never given even a few days to deal with the family tragedy.

‘You will know that our case is now before the United Nations Commission on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, who issued the order ‘Interim Measures’ to the UK government last night to keep Archie alive while the Commission considers the case. Under Article 4 of the Optional Protocol to the United Nations Convention on Disabilities, interim measures are binding on the UK as a matter of international human rights law.

‘Sadly, the Trust’s lawyers have responded by telling the family that the Trust intends to defy the UN order and proceed with the removal of life support from Archie as early as Monday 1st. 8.

‘If this happened, it would be an extraordinary cruelty and a clear violation of Archie’s rights as a disabled person.

‘Archie has the right to have his life and death decisions made by NHS and UK courts and scrutinized by an international human rights body. Rushing death to prevent that is completely unacceptable.

‘I am confident that you will act immediately, as a member of the government responsible for the NHS, to ensure that this does not happen and that our country respects its obligations. under international human rights treaties that we have signed and ratified.’

The ‘devastated’ couple lost battles at both the High Court and the Court of Appeal in London, where they asked doctors to continue treating him.

Speaking after the UN order was announced yesterday, Ms Dance revealed her gratitude to have been given another chance to keep her son alive.

She said: ‘I am very grateful to the UN for their quick response and action for my son.

‘We were under a lot of stress and anxiety; we were devastated and not knowing what was going to happen next was horrible. To get this news now means everything.

‘This is the first time this has happened in the history of this inhuman system in the UK.

‘There’s been a lot of ups and downs, but we’ve put on the full armor of God, went into battle and now we’ve given Archie time, which is all we ever asked for.’

The Supreme Court rejected an appeal, in which it asked to bar the doctors from shutting down his life support machine until they could file an appeal.

They have since held discussions with bosses at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, where he is being treated, to seek assurances that this will not happen while they appeal. to UNRPD.

Archie’s parents have argued that the UNRPD protocol allows ‘individuals and families’ to complain about violations of the rights of people with disabilities.

The UK has joined the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which allows UNRPD to ask the UK government to delay the withdrawal of life support while the complaint is being investigated.

The family argued that stopping treatment would violate the UK’s obligations under Articles 10 and 12 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and Article 6 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Andrea Williams, executive director of the Christian Legal Center, which has supported the families’ case, said: ‘We are delighted with the response from the UN. It is time for UK processes to revolve around proactively ending the lives of internationally monitored children.

‘We now hope and pray that the United Nations Commission can do justice to Archie and his family, as well as other disabled people in UK hospitals in schools. suitable in the future.

‘Life is the most precious gift we have.

‘We have been with the family since the beginning three months ago following the tragedy and now continue to pray for this beautiful boy, Archie, and for all involved. “

Archie, pictured, was found with a cord on his head in April and hasn’t regained consciousness since

Archie with mother Hollie Dance (left), brother Tom Summers and sister Lauren Summers

The judges heard that Miss Dance found Archie unconscious with a rope tied to her head on April 7.

She thought he might have entered an online challenge. The young player has not yet regained consciousness.

Doctors treating Archie at the Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, deemed him brain dead and said continuing life support treatment was not in his best interest.

Bosses at the hospital’s management fund, Barts Health NHS Trust, have asked for a decision on what medical moves are in Archie’s best interest.

A Supreme Court judge, Justice Arbuthnot, initially reviewed the case and concluded that Archie was dead.

But the Court of Appeal judges still opposed Justice Arbuthnot’s decision and said the evidence should be considered by another Supreme Court judge.

Speaking as they issued their final appeal today, Ms Dance said: ‘Words cannot describe how devastated we are.

‘The pressure put on us from the start to rush through the process of ending Archie’s life was disgraceful. ‘

All we ever asked for was more time. The urgency from the hospital and the court was inexplicable as the other parties were glad to give us more time.

‘I don’t believe there was anything ‘decent’ about planning Archie’s death. For me, this would be the most painful ending.

‘Parents need support, not pressure. It’s exhausting what we’ve been through.

‘We don’t need to fight constantly in hospital in the courts for what we believe is right for Archie.

‘However, the top judges have told us this is the law, if so, the law must change.

‘We will continue to fight for Archie, we will not give up and are now waiting for a response from the UNRPD.’