The Home Affairs Minister has revealed to Neil Breen details around the Biloela child’s illness have been conveyed inaccurately. 

Three-year-old Tharnicaa Murugappan was transferred from Christmas Island to a Perth Hospital for treatment with her mother accompanying her.

Media reports indicated the child was suffering from pneumonia and sepsis.

Karen Andrews: “What I can say is a lot of the reporting about the illness the child is suffering from is inaccurate.”

Neil Breen: “That she’s not that sick?”

Karen Andrews: “I can’t answer anything that would give details of this child’s medical condition other than to say a lot of the reporting has been inaccurate.”

Neil Breen: “That she doesn’t have pneumonia or sepsis?”

Karen Andrews: “The illness the child is suffering and is in hospital for has been well and truly treated in the advice I have been given.

“I need to leave it at that but I do need to correct the record to a point.”

Press PLAY below to hear the Home Affairs Minister’s comments in full 

“The issue now is that the Home Affairs Minister Karen Andrews is saying she wasn’t as sick as we were all led to believe,” Neil said.

“So, I suppose there’ll be a debate now over whether the child’s got sepsis or some other blood infection.”

He later spoke to Angela Fredericks, a friend of the Biloela family who has actively interacted with the media in relation to the case.

“You’ve spoken publicly and said she’s had sepsis,” Neil asked Ms Fredericks. “Were you led to believe she had sepsis?”

Ms Fredericks said information she has given the media is based on “what the doctors are telling us”.

“So, for me when it happened, I was told a blood infection and then it was actually talking to some other medical professionals who actually used blood infection and sepsis interchangeably.

“So I believe that’s where there could’ve been some miscommunication.

“I’ve continued to say blood infection and untreated pneumonia.”

Press PLAY below to hear Angela Fredericks’ response