Delay for liver swap child

The expatriate parents of a toddler, who doctors say will die unless he has a liver transplant, must wait for several more weeks to learn whether they will have to return him to Britain to undergo surgery.

The couple, both health-care professionals, were said to be "distressed" at reports accusing them of fleeing abroad in defiance of a High Court ruling demanding the operation go ahead. They claim the operation will only temporarily lengthen their child's life and will lead to greater suffering. After last month's ruling they lodged an appeal, the result of which will not be known until the end of October at the earliest.