A matter of principle must now be upheld - Alex Cole-Hamilton
In the froth of last week’s coverage of the UK Budget, you may have missed something fairly historic that happened in the Scottish Parliament.
On Wednesday, Scottish Liberal Democrats united Scotland’s opposition parties to defeat the SNP over the principle of a vital new law for people with learning disabilities, autism and neurodivergence.
This is hands down the biggest defeat the SNP have suffered in this parliamentary session and demonstrates yet again that Scot Lib Dems have a newfound influence in the chamber. In our motion to parliament, we demanded the Government introduce the Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill.
We absolutely need this legislation to be brought forward. People in Scotland with learning disabilities, autism and neurodivergence need it to codify their rights and protections. To ensure every decision taken about their lives has their voice and their wishes at the very heart of it. That doesn’t happen right now. It would also ensure that every professional they encounter in their life is trained to understand their particular needs. That doesn’t happen right now either.
And perhaps most importantly we need it to establish clear and legally binding pathways for those with learning disabilities moving through the health service. All too often, they can be left marooned for years in hospital because there is no satisfactory service or support to receive them back into their communities. Horrifically there are nine Scots in this situation who have been trapped on wards for more than six years apiece.
This should have been a simple ask because the Government have been promising to bring this forward since the election of 2021. But in early September, the SNP Minister in charge quietly informed Holyrood’s Health Committee, that despite numerous promises made to some of Scotland’s most vulnerable people, they were ditching plans to introduce the legislation.
This was a craven and duplicitous u-turn. For years Ministers had been saying that new laws were needed to protect the rights and interests of people with learning disabilities, autism and neurodiversity and to enhance their rights to influence decisions that are made about them.
They went so far as to ask the views of 900 organisations and individuals, many of whom had to relive some of the most traumatic experiences of their lives as part of the experience. Put simply, the SNP raised the hopes and expectations of a group of Scots who have been perennially marginalised and forgotten about. They marched them to the top of the hill and left them there for five years only to march them unceremoniously march them back down again when they decided to ditch their plans to bring forward new laws.
It’s not clear what happened. Was it a concern over the cost of the proposed bill or a general disinterest amongst nationalist ministers? As of now, no cogent excuse has been offered.
The SNP stated over and over again that they wanted to lead the world in this area. But England now have an Autism Act, Wales have an Autism code, so never mind leading, it seems this Government aren’t even prepared to follow.
After all this effort, after all the hope and expectation they built up amongst these vulnerable Scots, it’s now essential that the SNP honour the stated will of the Scottish Parliament and introduce this vital new law.