Scottish family living in Adelaide for years saved from being deported

Stunning twist in case of hardworking Scottish family facing deportation as they vow to stay and FIGHT after receiving shock legal advice just hours before they were to be kicked out of Australia

• Scottish family set to be kicked out of Australia have been allowed to stay 
• The Greens have spoken to an immigration lawyer who advised them to fight
• He said they have a solid case and should be protected under Australia’s laws 
• Immigration Minister has been asked to step in and give them permanent visas

A Scottish family who were set to be deported despite living in Australia for 10 years, paying taxes and doing nothing wrong have been told they can stay – for now. 

Electrical expert Mark Green, 44, was headhunted for his specialist solar installation skills in 2012 and flown to Australia with his wife Kelly, 45, and daughter Rebecca, 19.

But after a series of broken promises by his employers which left them stranded without visas or permanent residency, they were set to be thrown out of the country at 10pm.

The family had packed up their lives, sold their furniture and were preparing to head to the airport for a flight out of the country.

But after consulting with a specialist immigration barrister they were advised they have grounds to appeal the deportation and have decided to stay and fight. 

Following their decision, the family were informed about 7pm on Wednesday night that the new federal Immigration Minister has personally stepped in to grant them a temporary visa for one month.

The reprieve from Labor’s Andrew Giles will allow the Greens to work through their new legal submission in the hopes they can be granted permanent residency. 

SA Premier Peter Malinauskas also became involved in the case on Wednesday and personally called to let the family know they could stay.

Mark Green, 44, his wife Kelly, 45, and daughter Rebecca, 19. (pictured) were to be kicked out of Australia at 10pm on Wednesday as calls were made for the Immigration Minister to step in 

‘We’ve been in contact with out lawyer and he’s told us that we should stay and fight, so we’ve got together and decided that’s what we’re going to do,’ Mr Green said on A Current Affair on Wednesday night.

‘We feel like we’ve been let down terribly through the process of all this – even by the Australian government and we’re just hoping to rectify the situation.’ 

‘We’ve had so many comments and we’re just overwhelmed by the amount of people that have supported us through this and we can’t thank everyone enough.’

South Australian politician Frank Pangallo from the SA Best party originally brought the family’s story to public awareness and was with them on Wednesday night.

He said SA Premier Peter Malinauskas ‘has just called me and said the Immigration Minister has granted a visa for another month to allow the family to work through their new submission’.

He joked to the Greens that they can now legitimately stay and fight their deportation and they ‘won’t be illegal tomorrow’.

The Greens said they were ecstatic to be returning to work tomorrow in Australia, with Mark adding his bosses ‘can’t wait’ to get him back. 

The Greens were told on Wednesday at 7pm just three hours before their 10pm deportation that they have been granted a temporary reprieve to stay in Australia (pictured)

Electrical expert Mark Green, 44, was headhunted for his specialist solar installation skills in 2012 and flown out to Australia with his wife Kelly, 45, and daughter Rebecca, 19

The Greens moved to their new home in Adelaide with the promise of their permanent residency being sponsored by the company flying him in.

But every time he’s been eligible, the employers have folded before the paperwork could be completed – and it’s now happened seven times to the devastated family.

They are now being kicked out of the country even although they’ve done everything by the book.

Relocating to the UK has cost them $60,000 – and forced them to leave behind beloved pet dog Maisie and 12 year old pet rabbit Marmaduke because of the prohibitive $35,000 cost of flights and quarantine fees.

The Greens have already spent more than $150,000 on immigration lawyers and visa and residency applications and were told they had to leave the country before attempting again.

A online petition to keep the Green family in Australia has more than 20,000 signatures. 

Mark Green (left) and his wife Kelly moved 16,000km from Scotland to their new home in Adelaide, with their permanent residency supposed to be sponsored by his company

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