Autism Bill

My Lords, I am delighted to rise for the first time in your Lordships’ House in support of this Bill. First, perhaps I may place on record my appreciation to the staff of this House for their helpfulness towards me and my family. I am particularly impressed by the way in which the Doorkeepers thrust notes into my hand as I wander through the corridors. They clearly have a much better idea of where I am than I do. Let me turn to the Autism Bill. I congratulate my honourable friend in another place, Cheryl Gillan, on championing this Bill and the noble Baroness, Lady Pitkeathley, on so ably introducing it in this House. I should like to take the opportunity to draw your Lordships’ attention to the close connection with another Bill before this House, the Welfare Reform Bill. The underlying concept in that Bill is that, if we invest in a disciplined fashion in people who need help in making their way in the labour market, we all win—that is, the individuals concerned, society and the taxpayer. The autistic fit exactly into this paradigm. Indeed, when I was compiling my independent report on this matter two and a half years ago, autistic people were one group that I had explicitly in mind. With the right support, autistic adults can make an incredible contribution in the workplace. Many have an attention, a focus on detail and a sheer perseverance that can be invaluable attributes in particular jobs. Two forward-looking employers—BT and Goldman Sachs—have programmes that allow people with autism to make this kind of contribution. BT has told me that autistic people are highly prized for their extraordinary facility with numbers. The tragedy is that, according to estimates provided to me by the National Autistic Society, only some 50,000 adults with autism, or 15 per cent, have regular work. The approach presaged in the Welfare Reform Bill would allow us to find the very considerable resources necessary to transform the lives of those adults with autism. It would do so despite the very difficult times that we are facing, when the economic pressures on spending will inevitably be severe. Properly organised programmes, managed with financial rigour, should allow the 15 per cent figure to improve dramatically. With your Lordships’ indulgence, I should like to take advantage of this unique opportunity to place some more personal remarks on the record. My family arrived here 71 years ago at a very difficult time for this country and the world. They escaped only because Sigmund Freud, my great-grandfather, was a well known figure. My father and grandfather were both desperately proud to join the Armed Forces of their newly adopted home. Indeed, my father parachuted back into Austria in 1945 as an officer of the SOE and single-handedly captured the enemy aerodrome of Zeltweg. The descendants of Sigmund Freud have been accepted and have thrived in this country. I cannot remember a single occasion—not one—when I have been made to feel an outsider or that I did not belong here. That is a remarkable testimony to the tolerance and generosity of this country. I firmly believe that—perhaps with one or two exceptions—I would not have been able to make that statement of any other country in the world. While I would not presume to speak for all Freuds, who are a fiercely individualist group, many of them will, I know, join me when I place on record in this place and at this very difficult time my gratitude to this great country for all that it has done to nurture the Freud family and other families who have come here for freedom and to achieve their potential. I thank the House for its indulgence.