Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will make it his policy to have an independent review of the definition of autism as a mental disorder under the Mental Health Act 1983.

We recognise the significance and importance of this issue. We are committed to improving the treatment of people with learning disabilities and/ or autism in law. We will comment on this in our Mental Health Act White Paper, which will be published as soon as it is possible to do so.