Ashya parents ‘do not feel safe enough’ for a return to Britain

Brett and Naghmeh King are planning to travel to Spain after the five-year-old’s proton therapy in the Czech Republic comes to an end.

Earlier, it was revealed that Ashya is set to undergo his last dose of the specialist treatment in Prague today.

Speaking while holding his son, Mr King said: “After some time we decided that perhaps it was best to return to Spain. We have a property there so life can be established quite easily for us.

“At the moment we don’t feel 100 per cent safe, I suppose you would call it, contemplating being in England until perhaps they do this investigation into how everything was conducted for us.

“Once that has been established then we can think about going back to England. But for the time being we have been in contact with a doctor in Spain so we are continuing with (Ashya’s) treatment in Spain instead of England.”

Asked why they were reluctant to return to Britain, Mr King said: “Because there is so much still at stake.

“We wouldn’t want to lose Ashya. It would probably never happen but just having that small risk that you don’t have to do anything wrong to have your children taken away and (be) thrown in prison...”

The Kings sparked an international manhunt when they removed Ashya from Southampton General Hospital on August 28 without medical consent.

They faced a protracted legal battle to get him to the Proton Therapy Centre (PTC) in Prague, with a High Court judge only approving the move after they had been released from police custody in Spain.

The therapy is not available for him on the NHS, although the health service has since agreed to fund Ashya’s treatment.