English: Thank you very much, Paul Davies, for raising these important issues around people on the autistic spectrum, which are complicated. However, I'm not convinced that a Bill is the right response. This is not a party political matter, and we're going to be given a free vote, so - . I don't think it should be under any circumstances a party political matter. For example, the example given by Caroline of the young lady who was denied access to the proms - that doesn't seem to me that we need an autism Act; we need a very rapid review of the well-being policies of that particular school. I'm not in denial at all that people on the autistic spectrum or their families face very challenging issues to get the services that they require, but I'm not sure that an autism Bill is the way forward. I bear in mind that the 'A Healthier Wales' document, which is the Government's response to the parliamentary review of the NHS, has an emphasis on ensuring that we have the team around the patient, ensuring that we have responsive services, we have patient-centred care, but, in addition to that, we're in danger of medicalising something that I think ought to be much more of a social model in response to this. We need all our schools and all our businesses to be autism-friendly in the same way that we would like them to be dementia-friendly. So, I have some considerable concerns about pushing for a Bill for one condition, when it's in danger of compartmentalising conditions into silos, because people on the autistic spectrum may, on the one hand, be nuclear physicists; on the other hand, they may have other conditions that disable them and challenge them. And the autism may or may not be the dominant presenting issue that they need support with. I absolutely understand that there is considerable room for improvement in the way we meet the needs of children and adults who are on the autistic spectrum, but I don't feel that we've necessarily given the autistic spectrum disorder strategic action plan and the delivery plan, which was only launched in November 2016, enough time to really say whether this is the right road to go down. There's no clear treatment for this condition. Obviously, it depends very much on the specific issues; this is not about ensuring clinical guidelines are being adhered to. We need appropriate services to support the challenges faced by particular individuals. We clearly need to ensure that those who have most contact with individuals, particularly schools, are responding appropriately, but we need to ensure that there is zero tolerance of schools that push pupils off their rolls because they think they might impact on their exam performance. We need fully integrated, inclusive schools, and I would happily stand on the picket line to challenge anything like that that's going on. I'm still struggling with whether or not there's been a rise in autism, or whether there's been improved diagnosis. It's something I'd be interested to get Paul Davies's view on. Clearly, were there to be a pattern of cause and effect that we could detect by collecting information through the register that local authorities are obliged to have for children, and we could oblige them to have for adults too - if there was to be a pattern around the diagnosis of autism and were it to be linked to environmental issues, we'd clearly be obliged to act on that. So, I think information is extremely important, but I have concerns about putting this into the straitjacket of a Bill when we already have a lot of obligations around the ways in which both local authorities and health boards need to respond, and I feel we haven't given sufficient time to ensure that those are being appropriately delivered and rolled out.
Welsh: Diolch yn fawr, Paul Davies, am godi'r materion pwysig a chymhleth hyn ynglŷn â phobl ar y sbectrwm awtistig. Fodd bynnag, nid wyf yn argyhoeddedig mai Bil yw'r ymateb priodol. Nid mater pleidiol yw hwn, ac rydym yn mynd i gael pleidlais rydd, felly - . Nid wyf yn credu y dylai fod yn fater pleidiol mewn unrhyw amgylchiadau. Er enghraifft, yr enghraifft a roddwyd gan Caroline o fenyw ifanc y gwrthodwyd mynediad iddi i'r prom - nid yw hynny'n ymddangos i mi fel rheswm dros fod angen Deddf awtistiaeth; mae angen adolygiad cyflym iawn o bolisïau lles yr ysgol benodol honno. Nid wyf yn gwadu o gwbl fod pobl ar y sbectrwm awtistig neu eu teuluoedd yn wynebu problemau heriol iawn i gael y gwasanaethau sydd eu hangen arnynt, ond nid wyf yn siŵr mai Bil awtistiaeth yw'r ffordd ymlaen. Rwy'n cadw mewn cof fod y ddogfen 'Cymru Iachach', sef ymateb y Llywodraeth i'r adolygiad Seneddol o'r GIG, yn cynnwys pwyslais ar sicrhau bod gennym dîm o amgylch y claf, fod gennym wasanaethau ymatebol, fod gennym ofal sy'n canolbwyntio ar y claf, ond yn ogystal â hynny, rydym mewn perygl o drin yn feddygol rhywbeth y credaf y dylai fod yn llawer mwy o fodel cymdeithasol mewn ymateb i hyn. Mae angen i'n holl ysgolion a'n holl fusnesau fod yn ystyriol o awtistiaeth yn yr un ffordd ag y byddem yn hoffi iddynt fod yn ystyriol o ddementia. Felly, mae gennyf gryn bryderon ynglŷn â gwthio am Fil ar gyfer un cyflwr, pan fo perygl o ddosbarthu cyflyrau i seilos, oherwydd gallai pobl ar y sbectrwm awtistig, ar y naill law, fod yn ffisegwyr niwclear; ar y llaw arall, gallai fod ganddynt gyflyrau eraill sy'n eu gwneud yn anabl ac yn eu herio. Ac efallai nad yr awtistiaeth yw'r brif broblem y maent angen cymorth gyda hi. Rwy'n llwyr ddeall bod cryn le i wella'r ffordd rydym yn diwallu anghenion plant ac oedolion sydd ar y sbectrwm awtistig, ond nid wyf yn teimlo ein bod o reidrwydd wedi rhoi digon o amser i'r cynllun gweithredu strategol ar anhwylderau sbectrwm awtistig a'r cynllun cyflawni, a lansiwyd ym mis Tachwedd 2016, i allu dweud o ddifrif mai dyma'r ffordd gywir. Nid oes unrhyw driniaeth glir ar gyfer y cyflwr hwn. Yn amlwg, mae'n dibynnu llawer iawn ar y problemau penodol; nid oes a wnelo hyn â sicrhau bod cydymffurfio'n digwydd â chanllawiau clinigol. Mae arnom angen gwasanaethau priodol i gefnogi'r heriau a wynebir gan unigolion arbennig. Yn amlwg mae angen inni sicrhau bod y rhai sydd â fwyaf o gysylltiad gydag unigolion, yn enwedig ysgolion, yn ymateb yn briodol, ond mae angen inni sicrhau nad oes unrhyw oddefgarwch tuag at ysgolion sy'n gwthio disgyblion oddi ar eu rhestri oherwydd eu bod yn credu y gallent effeithio ar berfformiad arholiadau'r ysgol. Mae angen ysgolion cwbl integredig a chynhwysol, a buaswn yn falch o sefyll ar y llinell biced i herio unrhyw beth felly sy'n digwydd. Rwy'n dal i fethu deall a fu cynnydd mewn awtistiaeth neu a yw diagnosis yn well. Hoffwn glywed barn Paul Davies ynglŷn â hynny. Yn amlwg, pe bai patrwm o achos ac effaith y gallem ei ganfod drwy gasglu gwybodaeth drwy'r gofrestr y mae'n ofynnol i awdurdodau lleol ei chael ar gyfer plant, ac y gallem eu gorfodi i'w chael ar gyfer oedolion hefyd - pe bai patrwm ynghlwm wrth y diagnosis o awtistiaeth a phe bai'n cael ei gysylltu â materion amgylcheddol, yn amlwg byddai dyletswydd arnom i weithredu ar hynny. Felly, credaf fod gwybodaeth yn eithriadol o bwysig, ond mae gennyf bryderon ynglŷn â gosod hyn mewn Bil caeth pan fo gennym eisoes lawer o rwymedigaethau mewn perthynas â'r ffyrdd y mae angen i awdurdodau lleol a byrddau iechyd ymateb, a theimlaf nad ydym wedi rhoi digon o amser i sicrhau bod y rheini'n cael eu cyflawni a'u cyflwyno'n briodol.