Member

I have to tell the House that in the years since the Act went on the statute book, I have periodically put down Written Questions to ask Ministers how many times the Secretary of State has called in someone from health or from a local authority because their services to the autistic community have been wanting. I can categorically say that, shockingly, no Secretary of State has ever exercised the power in the Autism Act. The Minister will get the point immediately, but I am worried that commitments in the Bill we are talking about today will somehow fall down the same black hole that this has gone down. This is one of the main reasons why I was particularly anxious that this House should post-legislatively review the Autism Act 2009.