MUMMY'S LITTLE SOLDIER
Charlie Gard’s heartbroken mum makes emotional appeal to Theresa May to let desperately ill son have US treatment – and reveals she keeps his locks of hair
CHARLIE Gard's mum this morning made an emotional plea to Theresa May, "pleading" with the PM to allow her desperately ill son to receive experimental treatment available in the US.
Connie Yates and dad Chris have urged the Prime Minister to give Charlie a chance to undergo the treatment which they believe would give him a ten per cent chance of survival.
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The family also shared a picture of Charlie in his hospital bed, wearing a t-shirt that read: "Mummy's little soldier."
He also had a blanket which has "Charlie's Army" written on it.
Asked on by presenter Nigel Farage what she wanted to say to the PM, Charlie's mum said: "I just really really want you to support us and give Charlie this chance.
"I did actually find your statement quite encouraging because you said if there's new information then you hope that Great Ormond Street would do what's in the best interest of Charlie.
"There is new information now that this has a better chance than previously thought.
"So I just hope that this gives Charlie that chance.
"I'm pleading with you as the Prime Minister of our country to help one of your citizens, to support us like others are supporting us."
Charlie has a rare genetic condition and brain damage, and his parents have found themselves at the centre of a lengthy legal battle with doctors at London's Great Ormond Street Hospital.
Medics say the treatment - which US doctors say they could also send to the UK - would not help the boy.
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However Mrs May's hands are tied in the fight to aid Charlie's cause, as she cannot interfere with the court ruling.
And after the Vatican offered to help, foreign secretary Boris Johnson told his Italian counterpart that decisions on Charlie's treatment must “be led by medical opinion, supported by the courts”
Connie also appeared on Good Morning Britain today, explaining how she is having to savour every moment with her son.
Speaking about giving Charlie his first haircut last week, she said: "I've been trying to do it for ages.
"He was starting to look like a nutty professor so I thought I've got to cut the sides - I wasn't allowed to cut the top bit.
"I got to keep his hair as well. It's just these little things I keep. It sounds ridiculous but when I cut his nails I keep the clippings in case it is the last time I cut them.
"Just little silly things like that."
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She said that her family are going through a "living hell" and doctors are giving him "no say in his life".
But while Connie is savouring every last moment, she still insists that her son would have a 10 per cent change of surviving if Charlie was allowed to receive the treatment.
Charlie Gard's condition and his story so far
Charlie Gard is in the “terminal stages” of a disease called mitochondrial DNA depletion syndrome, after both of his parents were unknowingly carrying the faulty gene.
Sufferers of the condition do not get energy to their muscles, kidneys and brain, and is typically fatal in infancy and early childhood.
The 10-month-old is said to be one of only 16 people to have ever had the condition and his desperate mum and dad have been unable to find a treatment in the UK for him.
They raised £1.3million to send him America for treatment but doctors at Great Ormond Street Hospital said Charlie should be allowed to die in dignity and applied for permission to have his ventilator switched off.
The European Court of Human Rights’ ruled the doctors' decision would be upheld and his parents were not allowed to intervene in their child’s case.
The family were given extra time to say goodbye before his life support is turned off.
Now US President Donald Trump and the Pope have offered to help as "Charlie's Army" vocalised their support for him all over the world.
British doctors say their "hands are tied" and they are unable to let the tot fly to Italy, so the Italian foreign minister called for crisis talks with Boris Johnson - who backed the doctors' and courts' decision.
Theresa May also confirmed she supports Great Ormond Street’s decision not to let Charlie fly.
She was set to speak with Trump about the child's fate at the G20 summit in Hamburg, as his followers continue their support.
The Pope declared on July 6 he wanted to give the youngster a Vatican passport to help him travel to an Italian hospital for treatment, before a New York Hospital offered to admit him - and even ship experimental drugs to the UK.
The parents say they have the backing of five doctors - two British, one Spanish, one American and one Italian.
Connie also insisted her son was not in pain, and says that she could not see him suffer, adding: "Euthanasia is illegal. Suicide is illegal. How is this legal?"
During the emotional interview, the mum said the support of world leaders continues to give her hope.
Trump's words come just one day after Pope Francis added his voice to calls for Charlie to be given one final shot at life.
Why the Catholic Church has got involved in Charlie's fight
The Pope first addressed Charlie's tragic situation in a tweet, explaining why the Catholic philosophy on the sanctity of life demands the religion's intervention.
He wrote: "To defend human life, above all when it is wounded by illness, is a duty of love that God entrusts to all."
After this, Pope Francis' spokesman, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, said they would work to "overcome" British legal rulings as Great Ormond Street Hospital delayed taking the tot off life support for a week so Charlie's parents could say goodbye.
Since the move was delayed, Vatican hospital Bambino Gesu president Mariella Enoc said: "We will continue speaking to the family and our team here will carry on studying the case to see what can be done.
"The only thing I will say and repeat is that we are ready to welcome the family and help them, as the Pope requested."
Addressing the intervention from the US President, she said: "I think he saw our story.
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"It does give us hope, because there was no hope left anymore.
"Charlie was going to die on Friday... and then it was going to be on the Monday instead. But then I think the White House got involved over the weekend and that changed things."
Euthanasia is illegal. Suicide is illegal. How is this legal?
Charlie's mum
Great Ormond Street Hospital has argued that Charlie is suffering and that it is in his best interests to not continue fighting for life.
A statement at the time of the court hearing read: "We recognise that this is a very distressing situation and for no one more than Charlie’s devoted parents and family.
"Charlie is a terminally ill child with an exceptionally low quality of life. Our priority at Great Ormond Street Hospital must always be to protect the best interests of the child.
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"We work extremely hard to deliver the best possible care for all the children entrusted to us and use pioneering treatments, wherever possible.
"In Charlie’s case, we explored the request to use a therapy that had not been used before and sought independent medical opinions on what would represent the best possible treatment for Charlie.
"The medical and legal consensus, confirmed by today’s ruling, is that it is in Charlie’s best interests to be allowed to die with dignity.
"This is a sad day for everyone who has been touched by this case. Our priority is now to work with the parents as we continue to care for Charlie and progress towards the next steps."
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