‘Not good at nuance’: Former minister reveals autism diagnosis in retirement speech

When Harriet Shing was diagnosed with autism, she was already an elected member of parliament and found herself overwhelmed by things that never seemed to bother other people.

Although the diagnosis helped her navigate these moments, Shing found the prospect of telling people so daunting that, most times, she chose not to.

But during her valedictory speech in parliament’s upper house on Tuesday night, the retiring former minister, who has served in the Labor government since its surprise election victory in 2014, went public about her diagnosis for the first time.

“I have always been a bit unusual ... in more than a handful of ways,” she said.

“It is not just a case of being – as described in The Age in what I consider to be the greatest compliment I have ever received in my working life – ‘ a serious policy wonk ’.

“When I was diagnosed with autism early in my parliamentary career, a lot of things started to make sense to me.

“About why so many things did not easily make sense to me and why I found myself overwhelmed at various points by a range of different things that many people do not think twice about.”

Shing said telling people had been difficult, and making her decision to share her story in parliament was “quite a confronting moment”.

“And it has been really exhausting – so exhausting that in many instances it has actually just been easier, at least in the short term, not to say anything at all,” she said.

The MP – who held portfolios including health, water, equality and the Suburban Rail Loop during her time as a minister – thanked those who had made small, important adjustments to cater for her condition.

“From changing lighting to managing last-minute changes to plans and understanding my reputation for taking just about everything literally and my endless questions based in curiosity and a desire to understand evidence, merits and difficulties: thank you. I do not make it easy,” she said.

“Your accommodations made a huge difference in many instances and also enabled me to complete my days in one piece. You have made me feel less of an oddity, more certain, less of an outlier and valued for the things I can do, and that has meant the world.”

It is rare for Australian MPs to speak about being neurodivergent, although in August, federal Labor MP Josh Burns told the ABC’s Kitchen Cabinet program about recently being diagnosed with ADHD.

But the number of autism diagnoses has substantially increased in recent years, particularly among adults, as awareness grows. Autism Spectrum Australia estimated in 2024 that at least one in 40 people are on the autism spectrum, well above the previous estimate of one in 70.