Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. Two years ago, I spoke in this Assembly in support of a Welsh Conservative motion seeking permission to introduce an autism Bill. Our proposed autism Bill would have made provision for meeting the needs of children and adults with autism spectrum condition. Its aim was to protect and promote the rights of some 34,000 people living with autism in Wales. The fact is that many autism sufferers do not receive the support that they need to help them to get on with their lives. They face challenges when trying to access employment, education, health and housing services. This makes it increasingly difficult for them to lead an independent life. The decision of the Welsh Government to vote down our motion was met with widespread dismay.

To be fair, the provision of services for people with autism in Wales has recently been improved, but these irregularities bring into question the effective—. Sorry. However, the evaluation of the integrated autism service and the refreshed autism action plan—. A recently published independent report says that there are a number of inconsistencies in support provided at the moment. These inconsistencies bring into question the effectiveness of the integrated autism service in delivering adequate support for service users and enabling autism empowerment as well as autism awareness.

These days, service users are often unclear as to what support the integrated autism service can provide. They are often left frustrated when they cannot access the support service they require. Deputy Presiding Officer, the Welsh Government must clarify what services people with autism can expect, and it must assess whether services need to be expanded to ensure that service users receive the support that they need in order to deliver on a stated commitment to take action to address any gaps or weaknesses in provision. We need a commitment to regularly review the progress of services that people with autism can expect, so a consistent level of care is delivered by service providers.

There are also irregularities in the support that each regional integrated autism service provides. This has created a postcode lottery in services. Many regional autism services do not comply with all the national standards. Presiding Officer, I still believe that we need statutory backing to protect the rights of autistic people and raise awareness of a complex condition. The Welsh Government must implement the recommendation contained in the plan as soon as it is practical. I support the motion.