Meeting of the Parliament 15 March 2016
I welcome Mr McMahon’s intervention, and I recognise that—as with many aspects across the spectrum—the transition phase is always difficult. I would be the first to concede that we can and should be doing more. The core purpose of the autism strategy is to empower people, but we will not realise that ambition if we do not get the transition phase right. We are aware of the issues, and we are seeking to do further work on that. However, if Mr McMahon wants to contact me regarding his engagement with the group that meets at Hamilton Accies, I would be happy to hear what he and the members of that group have to say.
The point that I was going to make is that the Scottish Government will not be able alone to realise its ambitions on the strategy—we need others to work with us in this area. In that regard, it is very welcome that Hamilton Accies is involved in such work in its community.
I again thank Margaret Mitchell for bringing the topic to the chamber for debate, and I thank all those who have made such useful and thoughtful contributions. Finally, I commend Hamilton Accies for its community involvement programmes. I assure Margaret Mitchell and the people at Hamilton Accies that their efforts are sincerely appreciated.