I'd like to thank Paul Davies for introducing this Bill. I'm in complete support of this Bill and agree with everything that's been said so far in support of it, so I'll try not to repeat the points already made. 

But, turning to one of the representations that we've had against the Bill, I'm sure that everyone here has received the e-mail about the Bill, authored by a number of clinicians concerned that, if this Bill goes through, focus will be taken off conditions that, while every bit as impactive for the sufferers of ASD, have not secured a diagnosis of ASD and therefore aren't subject to this Bill and the targets or accountability that the Bill will introduce. To those clinicians, I would reply that if the Welsh Labour NHS fails to meet the needs of children who aren't diagnosed with ASD, it won't be the fault of the Bill. The blame will lie with the Government, whose successive failures so far have necessitated this Bill. I understand the concerns the clinicians have raised regarding possible unintended consequences of the Bill. It's something that you always have to watch, obviously, but the well-intentioned contribution to this debate may, in fact, act to let the Government off the hook for the mismanagement of the Welsh NHS. It will be in the hands of the Labour Government whether children with other needs will be ignored. This Bill won't cause anyone to be ignored; it's just Labour's running of the Welsh NHS that will cause that.

We can't vote against this Bill because we fear that the Government aren't competent enough to deal with it. The people of Wales need Government incompetence to be highlighted and challenged, not accommodated and appeased. So, with all due respect to the clinicians who've highlighted the concerns, I fear that following their advice will only make the Welsh Government feel better, not those people with ASD whose needs have been neglected for far too long.

We all wish this Bill wasn't necessary. We all wish the NHS was meeting the needs of those with ASD, but we also know that this isn't the case. Saying, 'Let's not do anything about it because there are other shortcomings that also need dealing with'—this diagnosis-versus-need argument—is not good enough. Should we feel the need to bring in additional Bills to tackle the shortcomings of the Labour-run NHS, we should do so. To refuse to tackle a problem solely on the grounds that it's not dealing with all of the NHS's ills is like a doctor refusing to treat a patient's long-standing symptoms until a cure for the underlying disease is found. We can't let those with ASD suffer any longer while a cure for Labour's incompetent running of the NHS is found, so I urge all Members to vote for this Bill. 

Turning to the second point that those clinicians made, nowhere is it more evident that the NHS is failing families in need than in the second point that they raise, when they say that there is a risk that individuals or families will feel that their best opportunity to access what support they need is by securing that particular diagnosis i.e ASD. Were the NHS and support service running as they should, this wouldn't be an issue, but the fact that it is an issue doesn't mean that we shouldn't do anything. As the Betsi Cadwaladr fiasco shows, not only can the Government not run the NHS at a strategic level, but they can't do it at a direct level either. That view is backed up by the e-mail that we've had from the clinicians.

So, really, the one and only reason this Bill is needed is because the Labour Government has failed to convince the Welsh NHS and other organisations to deliver the support and services needed by those with ASD. We know there are other individuals, groups of people and communities that are currently being let down by the Welsh Labour Government but, today, we're dealing with ASD, and in order to get those living with ASD the support they need, I urge everyone to back this Bill today. Thank you.