Tag Archives: learning disability

This week Scottish Lib Dems inflicted the first parliamentary defeat of this session on the minority SNP Government. SNP candidates had championed the idea of a Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill for years and it was in their manifesto for the elections in May. I represented the party at numerous hustings on disability, including specific ones to do with supporting people with learning disabilities, autism and neurodivergence, and there was unanimity amongst all parties.

Earlier this month, the SNP Government said that it would no longer pursue this, claiming that they could make change more quickly as though these things were a binary choice.

All MPs and MSPs in Scotland will have read heartbreaking accounts of the struggles that families of people with LDAN face, not least that the waiting lists for ADHD assessments in some areas are longer than half an entire statutory education period of 13 years. Think of the effect that that has on life chances. All MPs and MSPs in Scotland will be aware of children not going to school because there is simply not the support for them to enable them to access education.

The SNP’s decision to shelve the Bill and enshrine rights in law is unconscionable and we used our opposition day on Wednesday to call on the Government to bring back the Bill.

You can read the whole debate here.

The motion was proposed by Adam Harley, our health spokesperson:

On average, people with learning disabilities in Scotland die 20 years earlier than the wider population, and too many people continue to experience profound inequalities in healthcare, education, employment, social care and the justice system. That is why so many people had placed their hope in the proposed legislation, ever since the Government committed to it in 2021.

Justice spokesperson Yi-Pei Chou Turvey spoke about the impact of the justice system on people with learning disabilities, neurodivergence and autism: