That this House, noting that one in 100 people in the UK have autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), congratulates the Autism Alliance UK, representing 10 charities who provide services to people with autism across the UK, on the first national Autism Awareness Week, held between 1st and 7th October; notes that the national theme was that good planning makes a difference to people with autism, highlighting the need for those responsible for commissioning education and social care to plan services effectively for those with autism in their communities, particularly at the time of transition from children's to adults' services, and the lack of funding for services for adults who have Asperger's Syndrome, a higher functioning ASD, who are often particularly vulnerable; and further commends Autism West Midlands on its event at the Birmingham Botanical Gardens which included talks to help educate people on how people with an ASD experience the world from Professor Rita Jordan and John Simpson, a young man with Asperger's Syndrome, followed by delegates taking part in a giant Autism Ludo game which Autism West Midlands has promoted as a way to encourage social interaction and communication, two of the significant impairments experienced by people with autism.

That this House, noting that one in 100 people in the UK have autistic spectrum disorder (ASD), congratulates the Autism Alliance UK, representing 10 charities who provide services to people with autism across the UK, on the first national Autism Awareness Week, held between 1st and 7th October; notes that...

That this House notes that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of preventable death in the UK, where more than one in three deaths are from conditions such as stroke and coronary heart disease; recognises that many of these deaths could be easily avoided through a more integrated approach to vascular risk assessment and management; supports H.E.A.R.T UK, Primary Care Cardiovascular Society, Primary Care Diabetes Society and the National Obesity Forum in their Target 1000 campaign to reduce the risk of CVD; and calls on the Government to deliver a more comprehensive risk assessment programme, with the NHS offering lifestyle advice and targeted interventions to those identified as having a high risk of CVD to encourage patients to take individual responsibility for improving their diet, stopping smoking and taking more exercise.

That this House notes that cardiovascular disease (CVD) is the leading cause of preventable death in the UK, where more than one in three deaths are from conditions such as stroke and coronary heart disease; recognises that many of these deaths could be easily avoided through a more integrated approach...

That this House notes that more than ??17 million of taxpayers' money has been spent on tendering of Caledonian MacBrayne ferries, which provide a lifeline service to the islands of Scotland; also notes that Calmac is now the only bidder and believes the tendering process should be halted and the EU State Aid Guidelines should be challenged to avoid further unnecessary costs to the taxpayer; further notes that Caledonian MacBrayne's payroll has been moved offshore to a Guernsey-based agency, resulting in the loss of some ??2 million in National Insurance contributions to the Exchequer; and believes that there is no justification for this continued tax avoidance and that the Scottish Executive should take steps to end the offshoring of Caledonian MacBrayne's workforce.

That this House notes that more than ??17 million of taxpayers' money has been spent on tendering of Caledonian MacBrayne ferries, which provide a lifeline service to the islands of Scotland; also notes that Calmac is now the only bidder and believes the tendering process should be halted and the...

That this House congratulates the National Benevolent Fund for the Aged on its 50th anniversary; commends the work it does to help those older people in the UK living on a low income; applauds the hard work and commitment of all the volunteers that enable the life-enriching services it offers; applauds the generosity and hard work of the benefactors and donors of the Trust in providing all the financial support on which it depends; and calls on the Government to do more to support the work of this organisation and others like it in helping the disadvantaged elderly living on low incomes or in poverty.

That this House congratulates the National Benevolent Fund for the Aged on its 50th anniversary; commends the work it does to help those older people in the UK living on a low income; applauds the hard work and commitment of all the volunteers that enable the life-enriching services it offers;...

That this House takes careful note of the logic professed by successive governments over the past 25 years to the long-running fiscal sore of irrecoverable VAT and its consequential impact on the work of charities; notes with equal care that the common and oft-recited rebuttal to successive pleas for regulatory change has been to pray in aid the specious justification that `there are something like 250,000 charities and a general exemption for all of those would produce astronomic costs'; further notes with a measure of restrained anger and impatience that some charities such as the Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) and other search and rescue agencies, staffed as they are by well-trained and highly skilled volunteers, invariably operating in conditions that are by definition extremely hazardous, save lives frequently by the very act of putting their own in mortal danger; and calls upon the Government for this reason if for no other to take this previously neglected aspect into account as a component of a further review of this issue so as to redress the circumstances which can cost the RNLI the loss of their cash as well as their crews.

That this House takes careful note of the logic professed by successive governments over the past 25 years to the long-running fiscal sore of irrecoverable VAT and its consequential impact on the work of charities; notes with equal care that the common and oft-recited rebuttal to successive pleas for regulatory...

That this House welcomes the launch of the BBC's 45th Blue Peter annual appeal; congratulates Blue Peter on running the Shoe Biz Appeal, which is asking children across the UK to collect shoes to be recycled to raise money for children orphaned by AIDS in Malawi, where somebody dies of an AIDS-related illness every eight minutes and as a result there are now more than 600,000 orphans; notes that Blue Peter viewers are being asked to collect as many of the nation's unwanted shoes as possible; and calls upon all hon. Members to join in and recycle their unwanted shoes in aid of the appeal.

That this House welcomes the launch of the BBC's 45th Blue Peter annual appeal; congratulates Blue Peter on running the Shoe Biz Appeal, which is asking children across the UK to collect shoes to be recycled to raise money for children orphaned by AIDS in Malawi, where somebody dies of...

That this House welcomes the launch of the 2006 Sunderland Echo Christmas Toys and Tins Appeal to gather presents for some of Wearside's neediest children, families and old people; further welcomes the plan to distribute toys and gifts to children who otherwise would not receive any presents and also to distribute gifts to pensioners who often live alone in isolation from the community; believes that many people from Age Concern Sunderland, Sunderland Social Services, Wearside Women in Need and the staff of the Sunderland Echo should be congratulated for backing the 2006 appeal; and further believes that this initiative by the Sunderland Echo newspaper should be fully supported by all the people of Wearside.

That this House welcomes the launch of the 2006 Sunderland Echo Christmas Toys and Tins Appeal to gather presents for some of Wearside's neediest children, families and old people; further welcomes the plan to distribute toys and gifts to children who otherwise would not receive any presents and also to...