Frail dementia sufferer, 96, endures 'rough' flight back to UK after Australia kicks her out
A frail 96-year-old widow who was kicked out of Australia after a visa issue has arrived back in Scotland.
Christina Grant moved to New South Wales following the tragic death of her eldest son, which came only a short while after her husband passed away.
The pensioner, who has dementia and is "nearly blind," has to leave the country once a year as part if her visa conditions.
Due to her condition, Ms Grant's family were concerned about her flying, so booked her on a cruise to Vanuatu in the South Pacific Ocean instead.
But she was told the trip did not qualify and her visa had expired as a result, The Daily Mail reported.
She was ordered to leave the country by July 26.
Ms Grant's daughter-in-law Diane said the grandmother requires care from family in NSW.
"Here is 96-year-old mum with bag packed, ready to leave her only close family and her home for the last couple of years, and being sent back to Scotland – hopefully to a nursing home – after the bureaucrats here unreasonably expired her visa", she wrote on Facebook.
"If it had instead been cancelled we could have gone to the administration appeals tribunal who, I believe, would have overturned this decision.
"The immigration department has kept themselves and us very busy, filling in endless forms over the last few months, and offer no help or advice."
In a statement, the Australian Department of Immigration and Border Protection claimed that they were attempting to resolve the situation.
"The tourist stream visitor visa is normally valid for stays of up to 12 months and, as with all visitor visas, is designed to facilitate temporary visits to Australia rather than long-term stays or residence," they wrote.
Ms Grant arrived at Glasglow airport on Friday after a 16,000 kilometre trip via Dubai.
"The flight was a bit rough, as you can imagine," Diane said.
"Christina was violently ill the day before we were due to leave and then she came good. I don't think she knows what is happening, though."
A video taken by Diane shows Ms Grant clearly confused about why she is being taken back to the UK.
"We're heading to Scotland, I think," she can be heard saying in the video.
