Reform Senedd candidate criticised over ‘autistic children’ comment

Richard Evans, Local Democracy Reporter

A dad has said a Reform UK candidate standing in next week’s Senedd election who once asked whether “all autistic children are violent” should not stand.

Adrian Mason, who is contesting the Clwyd seat for Reform, made the comment in 2019 when he was chair of governors at Ysgol Hen Golwyn.

Reform UK described the “personal attacks” as “baseless”. Mr Mason said he apologised at the time.

Dad Andy Moore, 53, of Old Colwyn, said his autistic son was excluded from the primary school that year, triggering a dispute that escalated to a tribunal.

The case centred around the headmaster, backed by school governors, choosing to expel Mr Moore’s son for 43 days – effectively until his time at the primary school had ended – avoiding the headmaster’s need to escalate the matter. But the family won their case against the school.

Mr Moore said: “We went to tribunal, and we won two cases of disability discrimination. One case was found proven, and the exclusion was found unlawful.”

Whilst the tribunal recommended written apologies be issued to both the family and their son, Mr Moore claimed the response he received from Mr Mason lacked sincerity.

“The letter from Mr Mason came through saying, ‘We have been told by the tribunal we have to apologise; therefore, we apologise,’” he claimed.

“It was absolutely insincere. He had a total lack of understanding, and a lack of compassion, and a lack of empathy with regards to education.”

With Mr Mason, a former Colwyn Bay Town Council councillor, now standing for election, Mr Moore said he felt it was important to speak out. “Personally, I don’t think he’s a suitable candidate for this area,” he said.

“I would urge people not to vote for him. Personally, I’ve got no issues with the Reform agenda or anything like that; it is him personally that I take complete and utter disregard to. If you’ve got an autistic child, you certainly shouldn’t vote for him.”

Old Colwyn councillor and leader of the Conservatives in Conwy Cllr Cheryl Carlisle contacted the local democracy reporting service about the matter.

She said: “If you have a child or a family member with autism or any sort of disability, you need to think twice about voting Reform in Clwyd, because this is the opinion of their number one candidate regarding children with autism.”

Mr Mason said his focus was representing Clwyd and ensuring all families get the support they need.

“This relates to a past issue in a school governance role which was dealt with through the proper process at the time. I accepted the outcome and apologised,” he said.

“I understand how important it is for families of children with autism to feel heard and supported, and that is something I take very seriously.”

He added: “My focus now is on representing everyone in Clwyd and ensuring that all families — especially those with additional needs — get the support they deserve.”

A spokesman for Reform said: “These personal attacks are baseless.”

He added: “As for the Conservatives, they would do well to stop slinging mud, since they have people standing for election in Wales with very colourful pasts.”