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The father of five-year-old Gabriella Zaghari-Ratcliffe has said he is feeling a "rollercoaster" of emotions after his daughter's return to the UK.

Gabriella has spent the last three-and-a-half years living in Iran with her grandparents to be close to her mother Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe, who is being held in an Iranian jail.

She visited her British-Iranian mother in the notorious Evin Prison when the authorities would allow, and after years being brought up in an Iranian household she can no longer speak English.

Hours after arriving home, Gabriella took part in a news conference given by her father at parliament, where she brought in a "welcome home cake" and sat on his lap as he told reporters about the joy to have her back in his arms - but also the "turmoil" of speaking on the phone to his wife who is "really upset".

"It was one of the things she really didn't want to happen - for her daughter to leave and she still be stuck in prison," said Mr Ratcliffe.

Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was arrested in Tehran in 2016 and sentenced to five years in prison after being accused of spying. She denies the charge.

She and her husband, who has been campaigning for his wife to be released, decided Gabriella should return home to the UK so she can start school.

Mr Ratcliffe said of his daughter's return: "She's a bit shy, a bit traumatised, she hasn't seen daddy for a long time. And there is a language problem, so she takes a while to feel safe.

"She has promised mummy she is going to be brave."

He said there was a "real risk" his wife's condition would deteriorate further due to Gabriella's absence.

"I was really worried about us taking this step, precisely because the thing Nazanin looks forward to is seeing Gabriella," he said.

"It will be an important lifeline that is taken away. I think we do need to watch and see how she reacts in the next few weeks."

He said communication with his daughter was an issue, and that she had become "frustrated she can't explain things to daddy" at times, but she had said "hello", asked "how are you?" and told him: "I love you so much."

Mr Ratcliffe added he planned to sit down with Prime Minister Boris Johnson in the near future - who raised his wife's case with Tehran when he was foreign secretary - with Gabriella.

"We looked at him once before to be our hero and now he's got another chance," said Mr Ratcliffe.

Earlier, after being reunited with Gabriella he described watching his daughter "peacefully sleeping next to me", but added: "Of course the job is not yet done until Nazanin is home.

"It was a hard goodbye for Nazanin and all her family. But let us hope this homecoming unlocks another."

The family's MP Tulip Siddiq said: "Iran must end their hostage diplomacy and release my innocent constituent. Britain should also solve its long-running debt issue with Iran.

"Nazanin is at breaking point, and today is yet another reminder that she has been failed at the very highest levels of government."

Evin Prison has been described by freed inmates as a "black hole" where political prisoners are tortured.

The Iranian regime claims Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe was plotting against the state when she was arrested on a visit to the country to see her parents with Gabriella.

She was visiting her family for Nowruz, the Persian New Year festival, with her then 22-month-old daughter when she was detained by the Iranian authorities.

Since her detention by Iran's Revolutionary Guard, her physical and mental health has deteriorated, she has been on hunger strike and has repeatedly had her hopes of being released dashed.

In March, Britain granted Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe diplomatic protection - elevating the British-Iranian dual national's case from a consular matter to a state issue between London and Tehran.

The move opened up new diplomatic and legal options for Britain, including raising the case at the International Court of Justice and at the United Nations.

Efforts to secure the release of Mrs Zaghari-Ratcliffe through normal diplomatic channels have so far failed to achieve a result.