Ivan was born with cerebral palsy complicated by Ohtahara Syndrome, a form of epilepsy which can severely affect the quality of life of the child affected as well as families.
Despite this, the Cameron family decided from the off that little Ivan would play a full part in their lives, and indeed he was featured in their Christmas card for last year. He became ill after Shrove Tuesday celebrations, and died yestarday morning in the company of his parents, who have released a statement asking for donations to various charities for children with special needs instead of flowers.
Cranmer, while acknowledging yesterday the grief of losing a child, reflected today that the death of Baby P, that of the 146 children killed in 1966's, Aberfan disaster or the weekly death-toll of troops in the middle east might be "more worthy of parliamentary lamentation and the suspension of democracy".
David Cameron might possibly agree with this, as he had lined up his second-in-William Hague to deputise for him at question time. On the other hand, Parliament has been used too often as the vehicle for rubber-stamping policies engineered by people who would rather that Ivan and other disabled children did not see the light of day, so it's good to see a celebration of the life of one young child with special needs bring the British parliamentary machine to a halt.
I can only finish this post by quoting the virtual prelate again: "Bless you, Ivan. May you find eternal joy and peace in the place created for you from the foundation of the world." Please say a prayer for his mother, father, brother and sister, who now have to find a way to manage without him, for a while.
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