Greg Hunt (Flinders, Liberal Party, Shadow Minister for Climate Change, Environment and Urban Water) Share this | Hansard source

I rise to give my wholehearted and bipartisan support to this motion. My office and I have interacted with families of children who have autism or autism spectrum disorders, as have almost all—perhaps all—members in this chamber. It is a real challenge and, as the father of a three-year-old, I understand how lucky and blessed I am to have a child with just the normal array of toddlers’ challenges. For parents of children with autism there is a great challenge, and the challenge comes about from this particular fact: it is permanent but it is treatable. That is the most important thing. That means it is something for which those of us in this chamber and in this parliament have a responsibility. In our time and on our watch we can do more to deal with this challenge.

I had the fortune recently to meet with researchers from Monash University, and they explained to me that through early intervention and early diagnosis we are able to take early and permanent action. The action which is taken in the first five years of life for those diagnosed with autism or autism spectrum disorders can make a difference for an entire life. That is a weight, a task and a responsibility which is real, important and significant. Many of our debates here are important but in some way anodyne, disconnected from the reality of a person’s day-to-day existence, but if we give bipartisan support on this issue the work that we do can be real and profound and transform not just one life but an inordinate number of lives of children and, in turn, of brothers and sisters and of parents. It is the ripple effect writ large.

Let me turn to one particular example. I have had the fortune to meet a woman in my electorate called Helen Lloyd. Helen is the mother of a little boy, Jordan, who has an autism spectrum disorder. He is making his way through primary school and is on his way towards secondary school. Every year Helen stages a walk of about 20 kilometres along the southern coast of the Mornington Peninsula. She does that to raise money for funds to provide additional assistance for Jordan in school. Without that additional assistance, Jordan would not be able to progress, would not be able to take the steps which have seen him become such a delightful young man. It has been a real honour to know Helen and Jordan, but I have seen the struggle which they have had to go through in order to obtain that special assistance, the additional teaching support. Jordan is a sufficiently high-functioning and intelligent boy to be classified as not needing the full array of support, which would give him the chance of leading the fullest, best life that he could lead. Therefore, his mother has had to struggle and scrape and work to make that difference. The challenge we face with autism is defined, to me, in the life and existence which Helen and Jordan Lloyd have had to lead. They have succeeded and triumphed and beaten the odds, but it is, I think, through the strength and courage of Helen and through the determination and delightful character of Jordan that they have been able to do so.

Not everybody has been as lucky as to have that combination. That is where our task begins. There are two things which need to happen: firstly, the groundbreaking research through organisations such as Monash University. If there is anything in our society which is deserved of funding, it is this sort of research to assist with understanding the diagnosis, the early intervention and, ultimately, the treatment which will deal with this problem of autism. Secondly, it is the funding itself for each individual case to ensure that as each child goes through preschool and primary school they get the direct support of additional personal assistance. That personal assistance will make the difference to the quality of their lives. That is real and important and that is what we stand for in this parliament. It is our task. It is our watch. I thank the member for the very valuable motion and we offer our bipartisan support.

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