The home secretary has failed to the reply to a letter from the First Minister regarding an Australian family that faced deportation from the country.

Nicola Sturgeon wrote to Theresa May on May 16 asking the minister to "urgently clarify" why a family in Dingwall, Ross-shire, could not stay in the country.

Despite the First Minister regarding the request as urgent she has received no reply from the Home Office.

The Brain family came to Scotland during an immigration scheme which has since expired.

Since settling in Scotland the Brains have put their seven-year-old boy Lachlan through the local Gaelic-medium education school.

Due to the intensive Gaelic education he has not been taught to read or write English.

The family claim if he is deported to Australia he would be two years behind his peers in the school system.

SNP MPs raised the family's case at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday.

Westminster SNP group leader Angus Robertson urged the chancellor, who was standing in for David Cameron at the session, to "sort it out".

On Thursday, the family's local MP Ian Blackford asked an urgent question in the Commons to the immigration minister James Brokenshire.

Blackford urged the minister to show some "compassion" and let the family remain in the country.

Brokenshire said he had already extended the Brain family's right to stay in the UK twice but he has not received an application from the family under the tier two visa scheme.

He insisted they do not face "imminent" deportation despite their right to stay in the UK expiring on May 31.

On Thursday, after meeting the family at the Scottish Parliament, the First Minister issued a fresh letter to the home secretary.

It reads: "I write to ask you gain exercise your discretion to grant a longer period of leave to enable the family to complete the necessities to make their application under the tier two of the UK points based system.

"I also ask that the family are granted a right to work throughout any extension of their leave so that Mrs Brain can begin her new employment and financially support her family and young son."

The brain family's local MSP Kate Forbes said it was not good enough for the home secretary to "deflect" and "delay" in corresponding over the matter.

Forbes said: "It's just not good enough for the home secretary to deflect and delay while the Brain family face such uncertainty over their future.

"That's two letters from Nicola Sturgeon to the UK Government awaiting a response - we need urgent action from the UK Government and an early assurance that everything that can be done, will be done to allow the family to stay in Scotland.

The home office declined to comment.