Don’t deport little Aussie Luca

But hang on Albo and co, do some research and you will find that there is a direct precedent where another young boy with CF was granted citizenship after also being threatened with deportation. Back in July 2019, the ABC reported the case with a happy ending thanks to the intervention of a former Morrison Government Minister:

Christine and Anthony Hyde have lived in Seymour in central Victoria since 2009, but their application for permanent residency was rejected as their three-year-old son Darragh was deemed a "burden" on Australia's healthcare system.

Their permanent residency application was finally approved last Friday after the case was referred to David Coleman, the Minister for Immigration, Citizenship and Multicultural Affairs.

"It's a relief," Ms Hyde said.

"Just waking up and worrying no more - it's great!"

Well, I agree! But I must add a disclaimer. I know just how they felt, thanks to a little hero who joined our lives as a grandchild 18 years ago this week. Let me explain with a name change to protect his privacy:

It's a miracle little Ted survived even his first day in this world. He arrived two months premature, a feat in itself, but within his first few hours he was back in the operating theatre for major surgery to repair a twisted bowel. A few weeks later, he needed another operation to reconnect the severed bowel, but just before that, another bombshell dropped. Tiny Ted was diagnosed with Cystic Fibrosis….

But he survived the second operation too, and when I first met him in the premmie ward at the Brisbane Royal Women's Hospital, he reached out a miniscule hand and held one of my fingers in a grip so tight, I knew he had the fighting blood of our Viking ancestors coursing through his frail little body.

Two months later, his proud Mum and Dad were finally able to take him home and it is another small miracle, plus a tribute to their love and devotion, that he has not looked back and has never spent another day in hospital. Recent advances in drug treatments available on the PBS (Trikafta and Orkambi) have helped, and hopefully before too long a cure will be found.

These days, he is a tall, strapping teenager who towers over me with his long hair and stubble beard which would not be out of place in a remake of Jesus Christ Superstar. He displays some rare qualities which have seen him win major academic awards at his high school before entering university this year. He's a tech-head who loves creating his own computer games, and has a wacky sense of humour combined with a flair for creativity. An inability to sit still for long frequently leads to challenges such as, "Give me a topic and I'll write a story in 10 minutes.."

Which he does. Maybe one day he'll be a budding entrepreneur who can compete with the increasing inroads of AI in our everyday lives.

Maybe little Luca will also be able to contribute in a meaningful, productive way if we just give him a chance and don't deport him because he's "too expensive to care for". One can only hope.

Come on Albo, there might even be a vote in it if you intervene and keep him where he was born in The Land Down Under. Remember you did it for Biloela's Tamil asylum seekers on the eve of their deportation.