Colin Beattie MSP pledges to support his autistic constituents and make Scotland an autism-friendly nation

Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, has pledged to support his autistic constituents and make Scotland an autism-friendly nation.
He made the pledge at an event held at Holyrood by The National Autistic Society Scotland.
As part of its Too Much Information campaign, the charity is asking people across Scotland to learn about autism and the small changes they can make to their behaviour to be more autism-friendly.
Speaking at the event, Colin Beattie MSP said: “I have pledged to help my autistic constituents by helping to make Scotland autism-friendly.
“I am pleased to support The National Autistic Society Scotland’s campaign and I hope that people across Midlothian and East Lothian will take time to learn about autism, a condition which affects around one in 100 people.”
Research has revealed that 66 per cent of autistic people feel socially isolated, and 44 per cent sometimes don’t go out because they are worried about how others will react to their autism.
Jenny Paterson, director of The National Autistic Society Scotland, said: “Autistic people and their families have told us that increased understanding is the single biggest thing that would improve their lives. That’s why we’re asking people to take time to learn about the small changes they can make to their behaviour that make a big difference – such as avoiding jargon and showing patience when others seem stressed or anxious.
“I am grateful to Colin for joining us at Scottish Parliament to show his commitment to making our nation autism-friendly.”
Around 58,000 people in Scotland are autistic. Together with their families they make up around 232,000 people whose lives are touched by autism every single day. To find out more about The National Autistic Society Scotland’s Too Much Information campaign, please visit www.autism.org.uk/get-involved/tmi.aspx