asked Her Majesty’s Government:

Where within the National Health Service diagnosis and treatment are available for autistic children with inflammatory bowel disease.

My Lords, children living with autism have access to the full range of local and specialist healthcare for the diagnosis and treatment of inflammatory bowel disease. This includes diagnosis and treatment in primary care, with referral to a paediatric gastroenterologist for specialist investigations, if appropriate.

My Lords, I am grateful to the noble Lord for that Answer, but he is grossly wrong. I know of about 1,500 parents who have children with autism and inflammatory bowel disease, and not one can get treatment in the NHS. They have to pay to go to the United States of America for a proper diagnosis and a treatment regime which they bring to the United Kingdom. Will the Minister persuade Her Majesty’s Government to ensure that doctors are properly trained in the diagnosis and treatment of autism? Autism is not a single diagnosis. It is an imprecise word for a syndrome of about 21 conditions. Doctors need to be trained to recognise these and to provide quick and accurate diagnoses and treatment for these children, who suffer inestimable pain and hardship because they cannot articulate.

My Lords, I certainly agree that the promotion of the early diagnosis of autism is very important; it is part of the general policies that the Government have promoted. I am afraid I cannot accept that treatment is not available for inflammatory bowel disease for NHS patients. I will of course undertake to investigate any specific issues which the noble Countess brings to my attention, but I am not aware of a general problem.

My Lords, does the Minister know of any proven medical link between autism and inflammatory bowel disease? My impression is that there is none.

My Lords, that is my impression too.

My Lords, will the Minister confirm that there is no support whatever for the link that Dr Wakefield claims to have established between MMR vaccine, inflammatory bowel disease and autism?

My Lords, I am very happy to confirm the statement made by the noble Lord. He is absolutely right.

My Lords, have the Government done any work with children with autism and their parents on how they communicate with not only the health service but also others—for example, the Department for Education and Skills? How wide is the training and how is communication between the child and the professional managed? Surely that is most important. Communication between the autistic person and the professionals is not easy. Will the Minister assure us that this is being addressed for a condition which is growing?

My Lords, recent studies suggest that the prevalence of autism in children under eight is approximately 60 per 10,000 and that a more narrowly defined autism is 10 to 30 per 10,000 children under eight. I accept that more always needs to be done to help those people with autism, and their parents and families, and I well understand the pressures on those families. We are working to take forward a programme in relation to a prevention agenda, better access to services and dealing with education for professionals, to which the noble Countess referred.

My Lords, does the Minister think that it would be a good idea to have an NHS database where information is available for parents and others on the specialised services of these people, because they cannot be in every district in the country?

My Lords, the noble Baroness has raised a very important question on the availability of information for parents when their child has been diagnosed with a particular ailment or disease. We need to ensure that the relevant information is given to them and that they are given access and information about support groups that can often provide a great deal of information. We do as much as we can to ensure that the NHS has that information available, but we are not complacent and I am very happy to look at the suggestion made by the noble Baroness.

My Lords, is there any reason why a child with autism cannot suffer from inflammatory bowel disease? I made no direct connection between the two. I just asked where children with autism and inflammatory bowel disease could get treatment. Doctors ignore inflammatory bowel disease because they think that the child is autistic.

My Lords, I responded to the question of my noble friend, asking whether there is a causal link between MMR and autism. I refer noble Lords to a review by the Medical Research Council which concludes that there is no such evidence. I do not have evidence that children with inflammatory bowel disease cannot get support, advice and treatment on the National Health Service. However, as I have said to the noble Countess, if she will give me information on where this is a problem, I will certainly investigate it.

My Lords, is not the noble Countess quite right that the diagnosis of autistic spectrum disorder is a matter for a trained specialist? Does the Minister share my concern that those who do not have the necessary specialist skills, such as social workers and teachers, tend too easily to attribute children’s behaviour to poor parenting when in reality there is an underlying organic cause? What guidance is there in this area?

My Lords, the noble Earl has raised an important issue about awareness of autism, not just among clinical personnel but also across a wider range of professionals. So far as the National Health Service is concerned, we agree that there is scope for further awareness training for health and social care professionals and my department is in discussion with the relevant bodies on these and other matters. With regard to the position for teachers, I would have to find out from another government department. However, the point he has made is entirely relevant.