A MAN dying of cancer has begged housing bosses to grant him his final wish to move closer to his family.

Allan McNeill, 66, of Greenock, has only months to live and asked for a move to Port Glasgow so his daughter can help care for him.

But his traumatised wife Mary told the Tele that River Clyde Homes (RCH) took those hopes away — by putting the couple at the bottom of the housing list.

Now they are pleading with the housing association to reconsider before it is too late.

Despite getting letters of support from doctors, Mary and Allan have been told that they are not a priority.

The couple — whose son Ryan was killed in a knife attack last year — say they feel they have been abandoned.

In another cruel twist Mary told how she had even packed up her flat because she had been told that RCH had a place in Port Glasgow for them.

Mary, 65, of Rankin Court, said: “I am begging them to give Allan his dying wish.

“This is his last act to look after me before he dies.

“He has everything else in order — but he wanted me to get help from my daughter while I cared for him in his final weeks.

“I have my own health problems and he wants the peace of mind of knowing that I am alright when he is gone.

“Our son Ryan was killed last year and he used to look after us both, and Allan is worried about how I will cope nursing him.

“He thinks they are just waiting for him to die so they don’t need to do anything.” The couple say they were left reeling at the housing snub because they thought a move was on the cards.

Mary added: “We have had doctors writing letters of support and Inverclyde Advocacy has been acting on our behalf.

“They called me to say River Clyde Homes had a flat in Thistle Court in Port Glasgow for us.

My family came round and we started packing.

“An occupational therapist came to visit us and she said that she would do what she could.

“She said that the flat in Thistle Court had a bath and she would see about getting a shower.” But after that visit Mary and Allan received a letter to tell them that their housing request had been turned down Mary said: “I feel totally and utterly betrayed.

“I have begged them, I have bared my soul but nothing seems to work. They are heartless.” Allan, who suffered from heart and lung disease, was told in Feburary that he had terminal cancer that had spread to vital organs like his liver and into his bones.

The family, already grieving over the horrific loss of their son Ryan, were devastated all over again. Allan decided that he wanted Mary to be closer to her daughter so that she was not alone in caring for him in his final months.

They made a request to be placed in River Clyde Homes’ group one category — ‘an internal transfer to improve quality of life for the frail and mobility impaired’.

But instead RCH officials put them in the lowest priority group six — ‘no assessed housing need but aspiring to locate to a new home’.

Their daughter Karen Ward, 44, is furious at the stance the housing association has taken.

She said: “I feel utterly helpless.

“We need to be together.

“We have all been to hell and back in the last year.

“I have three children and I work, so I help as much as I can.

“If they stayed in Port Glasgow I could pop in and out all the time.

“I can’t believe how heartless River Clyde Homes are.” The family hope a final, last-ditch appeal can persuade River Clyde to change their minds but Mary is dismayed and not optimistic.

She said: “It looks like it is too late for us but I hope this might shame River Clyde Homes and another family will never be put through this again.

Julie Allison, Your Home Lettings Manager at River Clyde Homes, said: “We are aware of the McNeill family’s situation and are sympathetic to their case.

“However, in terms of their housing need they are adequately accommodated in a home that meets their physical needs, and this is the over-riding factor in this case.

“There are other applicants who are physically unable to live in their homes.

“These people have a greater priority under our lettings policy; one that aims to be fair and equitable across the housing stock for all customers.” River Clyde Homes added that they have met with the family to discuss widening their choice of houses – but Mary and Allan told the Tele they dispute this point.