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House of Assembly - Fifty-Second Parliament, Second Session (52-2)
2013-03-06 Daily Xml
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AUTISM PLAN

Dr McFETRIDGE (Morphett) (15:07): My question is to the Premier. When will the Premier commit to introducing a state autism plan as originally recommended when the Premier was the minister for education in October 2010 by the ministerial advisory committee and also by the Office of the Public Advocate?

The Hon. J.W. WEATHERILL (Cheltenham—Premier, Treasurer, Minister for State Development, Minister for the Public Sector, Minister for the Arts) (15:08): I thank the honourable member for his question. The question of autism and the services that are necessary to meet the needs of young people with autism will receive specific attention in the launch program for the National Disability Insurance Scheme. We are very proud of the fact that we have been chosen as the launch site to trial the launch of disability services for children. Of course, autism is something which manifests itself in young people, and early diagnosis is a crucial factor.

Early intervention is a very profound way in which we seek to minimise the disabling effects of autism in our community, so by being part of that trial site we will have an opportunity to address directly the needs of those young people who have an autism diagnosis. I might say though, for the reasons advanced by the Minister for Disabilities, many more people on the autism spectrum receive services in South Australia than they do, in fact, receive in other places because of our broader definition of disability. So all of the matters that are subject to the aspirations in the autism plan that is being promoted to us can be profitably addressed in the NDIS trial.

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