met with autism campaigner
Ivan Corea and
Lee Scott MP in the Palace of Westminster in 2007 to discuss autism
2002 United Kingdom Autism Awareness Year The Autism Awareness Campaign of 2002 initiated debates in the
Parliament of the United Kingdom and the
Scottish Parliament for Autism Awareness Year, supported by 800 UK organisations including the British Institute of Brain Injured Children, The Disabilities Trust, Autism London and the
National Autistic Society. A major conference on autism was held at the
King's Fund in London and the first ever service for autism was launched in 2002 by the couple who initiated
Autism Sunday – it was held at
St Paul's Cathedral. Autism Sunday is now a massive worldwide event, celebrated in many countries.
2007 House of Commons autism debate and meeting with Prime Minister The Autism Awareness Campaign helped raise "awareness" about the condition in 2007 in the
House of Commons when
Lee Scott, MP for
Ilford North, brought a debate on autistic children. Ivan Corea met with the
Prime Minister of the United Kingdom,
Tony Blair and Lee Scott MP in April 2007. He presented the Prime Minister with a report calling for a national strategy on autism and a 10-year plan of action in the UK. The call for an urgent review on autism services was supported by leading British charities and community organisations including faith communities. Parliamentarians signed an
early day motion on autism (EDM 1359) backing the call for a national strategy on autism and change in policy for people with autism and
Asperger syndrome. Ivan Corea met with the British prime minister-in-Waiting,
Gordon Brown in June 2007 to urge him to launch the national strategy and 10-year plan on autism, particularly in building state-of-the-art "autism schools".
World Autism Awareness Day The Autism Awareness Campaign UK were involved in the first United Nations World Autism Awareness Day, declared by the
United Nations General Assembly on Wednesday 2 April 2008 on the recommendation of the State of
Qatar. The campaign called on the United Nations Secretary-General,
Ban Ki-moon to launch a world autism strategy. A CNN interview with presenter Max Foster was televised to mark World Autism Awareness Day on 2 April 2008. International coverage about the Autism Awareness Campaign UK was also given on
Associated Press and the campaigners received national coverage in the United Kingdom. The campaigners released a film to mark the United Nations World Autism Awareness Day with British peer the
Baroness Uddin in the
House of Lords. Open Every Door, written by the award-winning Sri Lanka-born singer and songwriter,
Nimal Mendis, was aired on the UN World Autism Awareness Day by CNN.
London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic bid Lord Coe appointed Ivan Corea as a
London 2012 Olympic bid Ambassador; the Autism Awareness Campaign UK were fully involved with the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic bid. ==See also==