Mr. Speaker, I rise today to speak about an issue affecting Canadians from coast to coast, autism spectrum disorder, or ASD.
I would like to thank my friend and colleague, the member for Edmonton—Wetaskiwin, for his hard work and his passion on this file. I am sure it is greatly appreciated by many across the country. He is doing a fantastic job, and I encourage the member to keep going on this journey, pushing this file forward.
I would like to thank all the members who have spoken before me and who will continue to speak after me. It is a very important motion and a very important issue. It affects people directly, the people suffering from ASD, as well as their families that are dealing with this. It is a terrible thing to have to deal with. I know my mother suffered from a very progressive form of MS. For the family unit to continue pushing forward, it is extremely difficult for all around, but we persevere and we continue to move forward.
Before I continue, I would like to mention that I am splitting my time with my hon. colleague from Carleton.
I would also like to recognize the organizations from coast to coast for their tireless work. I am certain everyone in this chamber knows of someone on the spectrum. They are our family, friends, neighbours involved in our communities, and they contribute to society. They are some of the most kind, generous, and, not to mention, incredibly smart people in our towns and cities.
For those at home, the motion we are discussing calls:
...on the government to grant the $19 million over 5 years requested by the Canadian Autism Partnership working group, Self-Advocates advisory group, and the Canadian Autism Spectrum Disorders Alliance, in order to establish a Canadian Autism Partnership that would support families and address key issues such as information sharing and research, early detection, diagnosis and treatment.
With the enormous amounts of money the Liberal government is spending on items with far less return on investment, like multi-million dollar office renovations, free tickets to a Broadway play, a taxpayer-funded vacation to billionaire island, or even lush spending on executives at Bombardier, this $3.8 million for each of the next five years is a comparatively small amount that could make an incredible difference to families across the country.
I sincerely hope the motion will receive support on all sides of the chamber. It is an issue that crosses political, economic, social, and cultural divisions. The funding requested will directly and positively affect Canadians. It is an opportunity to really help those who need it.
Here are some quick facts about ASD in Canada.
One in 68 children are diagnosed with autism, which is a 100% increase in just a decade. Boys are nearly five times more likely than girls to be diagnosed with ASD. Over 500,000 Canadians are living with ASD. It is the fastest-growing and diagnosed neurological disorder in Canada. In fact, lifelong caregiving can cost up to $5.5 million dollars more than the cost for a neuro-typical developing child. It costs approximately $60,000 a year to care for someone with autism, with most of that cost being special education and loss of parental income.
This conversation also reminds me of the battle the Ontario Liberal government lost a few years ago, when families of the 30,000 Ontario children with autism had to fight. Premier Kathleen Wynne told them that when their children turned five, or nearly five, they no longer qualified for intensive behaviour intervention, IBI. This is the only treatment that is statistically effective at improving the development of autistic children.
After a hard fight by opposition parties and the families of those affected by the short-sighted decision, Premier Wynne finally backed down. I am hoping their federal cousins will do the same and rethink their decision.
Autism spectrum disorder is a complex developmental brain disorder that can affect the normal function of the immune and nervous systems. It is a lifelong diagnosis that manifests itself in a wide range of symptoms, including difficulty communicating, social impairments, and restricted and repetitive behaviour. Individuals with autism and their families face unique challenges over their lifespan, potentially leading to families in crisis situations. People living with ASD face daily challenges, depending on where they fall on that spectrum.
As I mentioned earlier, ASD does not discriminate. It is one of the fastest growing neurological disorders in Canada. It is important that we understand some of the daily effects of it on Canadians. By no means is this an all inclusive list, but it is important for everyone to realize the daily challenges and issues that people suffering from ASD and their families face.
Children with ASD are eight times more likely to suffer from one or more chronic Gl problems than any other children. Seventy per cent have feeding or eating problems, including restricted eating or obesity. More than 50% have one or more sleep problems. One-third of people with autism are non-verbal. One-third of people with autism also have intellectual disabilities. Between 50% and 70% of people with ASD have one or more co-occurring mental health conditions, including ADHD, anxiety, depression, and bipolar disorder. Epilepsy affects around one-third of people with ASD compared to an estimated 1% to 2% of the general population. This is a serious disorder that has lasting problems.
I am proud to be standing here to offer my support for the motion on behalf of the many families and people affected by ASD. While I may not always agree with my colleagues opposite, I would find it quite troubling to see any member stand up in the House and oppose this.
During my research for this speech, I also learned that approximately 25% of individuals with autism are employed. Most of this group is considered high functioning, and only six per cent are competitively employed. With increased research, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment, we could have an even larger percentage of people living with ASD in the workforce, which would not only benefit them but their families and all Canadians.
I would like to discuss the impact of this motion in my riding. I am proud of the many organizations in my riding of Haliburton—Kawartha Lakes—Brock that directly help people and families with ASD. I would like to reiterate a story from my riding about a local person with autism in Haliburton who, thanks to the efforts of Point in Time and the support of the Haliburton community, completed high school and is currently excelling in college.
We have many similar stories across my riding and across this country of the great work of organizations and people supporting those with ASD. It is important to recognize these organizations for their great efforts: Point In Time; Community Living in Kawartha Lakes and Haliburton County; Five Counties Children's Centre; Horses Help Canada in Millbrook; Kawartha Lakes Autism Support; Kids First, Inc.; Kinark Child and Family Services; Camp Kirk; and the Durham Chapter of Autism Ontario that looks after Brock Township. There are of course many others.
I would also like to mention the Maier Centre for autism services. While this organization is not in my riding, my colleague from Edmonton West has done outstanding work with this group.
Unfortunately, due to its two most recent budgets, the Liberal government has neglected to make any pledges to autism organizations in Canada. This is in contrast to our previous government, which pledged $2 million in 2015-2016 to support stakeholder relationships on a Canadian autism partnership, of which $1.5 million would be used to support stakeholder participation in that working group. The group was tasked with developing a plan for the Canadian autism partnership that would address key issues such as information sharing and research, early detection, diagnosis, and treatment for supporting families.
Autism is a cross-partisan issue. It affects people from coast to coast. As I said, probably every member in the chamber knows someone affected by autism.