THE mother of an Afghanistan war veteran has pleaded with the Prime Minister to reunite her family who have been separated following an immigration row.

Susan McLaughlin, from Hereford, says her son, Andrew McLaughlin, feels "worthless" and let down by the country he has served in battle.

The 29-year-old has been split up from his American wife, Wanda, 31, and two-year-old daughter after the pair were deported just a week after arriving in the UK.

The case has many parallels with the experience of Holme Lacy's David Summers and his wife Maria who will be split up later this month when Mrs Summers' – a Canadian citizen – returns to the north American country having had a permanent visa application refused, despite her husband being British-born.

Mrs McLaughlin has written to David Cameron saying the deportation now "seriously jeopardises" her daughter-in-law's chance of a successful visa application.

"The whole situation has not been dealt with sympathetically," said Mrs McLaughlin, who lives off Bath Street. "I'm very upset."

The couple have been married four years and Mr McLaughlin has dual nationality with the UK and the US.

He met Wanda, an American citizen of Puerto Rican birth, while on leave from the forces in the US.

But after struggling to find suitable work over there, the family boarded a flight to the UK to set up home here after Mr McLaughlin had secured a job in this country.

But on arrival at Heathrow earlier this summer, Wanda encountered problems.

"She was told she could not enter the country without a visa," said Mrs McLaughlin.

"She was interrogated for hours and then my son was questioned to see if their stories matched.

"Eventually she was allowed to leave but they kept her passport and she would have to be deported in a week."

She says the whole experience has left "a very bitter taste in all our mouths".

"Yes, they were silly in that they did not make enquiries, but he thought because he was British they would be allowed in and she could apply for a visa once here," she said, adding the Prime Minister's office has now forwarded her concerns to the immigration department.

She says her son, who is currently living in Warwick, feels let down by the country which he served and has been made to feel "worthless".

As reported by the Hereford Times, retired couple David and Maria Summers, who tied the knot 45 years ago, have faced immigration red tape for months.

Later this month, Mrs Summers has to leave the UK after having her permanent visa bid refused by a judge for the second time.

She has a Canadian passport and came to the UK with the intention of looking after the elderly mother of Mr Summers, who is British born.