Tears of joy for daughter who beats deportation to care for her frail mother

American Deborah Phillips was given the last-minute reprieve in a late-night Parliamentary debate secured by her MP David Davis.

Miss Phillips, 48, was born to an English mother and an American father and moved here when she was three. She went to school in Hull and lived in Britain until she joined the U.S. Navy at 21.

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In 2003 she moved back to Yorkshire to look after her father Phil, who had Alzheimer's disease, and her mother Betty.

He died in 2005 and Miss Phillips cared for her mother, who had two strokes and suffers from arthritis, heart trouble and high blood pressure.

But she was repeatedly denied permission to stay. If Mr Davis, who is Shadow Home Secretary, had failed to win her case, she and her seven-year-old daughter Alexandra would have been sent to the U.S. within 30 days.

But Immigration Minister Liam Byrne decided to let her remain and promised to rip up the outdated rule that had prevented her staying.

Miss Phillips, whose plight was highlighted by the Daily Mail, said she was overwhelmed with relief.

She and her mother stayed up late for the debate, which was secured by local MP David Davis and took place shortly before midnight on Monday

She said: "We were very nervous as we sat down to watch on television, and holding hands. But then, when the Minister said he was changing the rules, there were tears streaming down both our faces.

"It was a feeling of one big relief that I could stay. It has been very stressful, and I have been through every emotion possible, but I have fought them, not given up and had some fantastic help. I cannot say how grateful we are."

Miss Phillips, 48, was born in the United States, moving to England when she was three. Her mother is English, but her father was a US citizen, who served in the Navy.

She speaks with an English accent, went to school and college in Hull and lived here until she too joined the U.S. Navy at 21 and went to sea.

After leaving the Navy and working in the U.S. she decided to join her family in Yorkshire in order to care for her parents, and made the move in December 2003.

Gaining permission to stay permanently became crucial when her mother lost her husband Phil, 77, who suffered from Alzheimer's, in May 2005.

Betty has had two small strokes and suffers from arthritis, heart trouble and hypertension. She is also prone to stress and anxiety.

But Miss Phillips was repeatedly denied permission to stay, under the obscure Home Office immigration rule which will now be swept away.

Mr Davis said: "This is a victory for common sense over bureaucracy."

In Parliament, he had compared her plight with that of terrorists and murderers who the Government has allowed to stay - including July 21 bomber Muktar Ibrahim and Learco Chindamo, who murdered the headteacher Philip Lawrence.

Children born abroad to a British mother and foreign father after February 7, 1961, and before January 1, 1983, can become British citizens through the maternal line.

Miss Phillips missed out because she was born on November 5, 1959.

No such date restrictions apply to people with a British father and foreign mother.

She first applied for residency in August 2005 but hit a mountain of red tape.

In May 2006, Miss Phillips - and her daughter - were forced to leave Britain but returned in June last year aboard a U.S. military cargo plane after her mother's health deteriorated.

The Home Office is to change the law by sweeping away the 1961 cut-off date, and bringing the rules for people with a British mother in line with those for a British father.

The change is expected to take place next year, as part of a bill to tidy up the mess of immigration law. Mr Byrne has guaranteed that, if the changes take longer than expected, Miss Phillips will be granted an extension to her leave to remain.

She plans to become a British citizen as soon as possible.

Mr Byrne said yesterday: "The Government does believe that children born to British mothers before 1961 are at a disadvantage when it comes to seeking citizenship and I have made it clear that we plan to put an end to this unfair situation.

"Deborah Phillips is affected by this but also has a unique combination of attachments to the UK that I believe make an exceptional grant of leave the fair thing to do."