Why would the UK have the highest rates for autism?

Ha, ha!

Hey, snap! High five etc. 

I read ‘Convenience Store Woman‘ by Japanese author Sayaka Murata. The central character seems to be autistic, and is the focus of her family and acquaintances efforts to make her live a more acceptably 'normal life', though she does no one any harm whatsoever.

The book ‘Convenience Store Woman’ explores that very thing. Being autistic in Japan. Implied autistic anyway. You have to be either graced with a version of autism where you are immune to feeling pressured or you suffer excruciatingly. Two contrasting characters show the ways this can go. 

I was thinking specifically about body language.   But i agree that maybe the high rate in japan is down to their rigid social rules.

I was told by foreign colleagues and students that I was particularly easy to understand. I was always aware when talking to non-native speakers, to enunciate clearly and avoid slang and idiom.

If your thesis is correct, autistic people must have a particularly bad time in Japan, with the Japanese reputation for extreme reserve, precisely nuanced etiquette and insistence on collective conformism

Perhaps the uk has more of a 'problem' with autism, because we are much less expressive as a culture than others?
Perhaps more autistic people in say, italy, get by because their more expressive nature makes reading people easier?
if we score autism out of 10 with 1 being mild and 10 being really autistic, maybe a majority of 1-5 level autistics can get by in an expressive country, but the uk, only 1-3 level autistics can get by to the extent that they are not diagnosed.

Im not saying that is the case, but i have an italian colleague who i find slightly easier to read.

And engineering prowess!

its all about diagnosis.... the uk clearly must be more proactive in diagnosing this is likely due to our free healthcare/nhs... in other country if you had a paywall to diagnose and possibly alot of expense in meds in the future if you got diagnosed im sure the money would put everyone off getting a diagnosis and theyd just put up with life without diagnosis or cost.

so its a mix of free healthcare combined with proactive diagnostic.

My dad built his own Farm Machinery. After he was killed, in the Troubles, I internalised my life. The first step towards downfall.

I chased IT. Then, after graduation, I was chased out.

I've a personal theory based on the old saying, "If you have Aspergers, then your granddad was probably an engineer".

This country had a LOT of engineers once... :c)

 I threw me two penneth in before I had read everyone else's comments

Unicorn reference. 

I think I've missed something. "Me 'spergers is playing up today"

Biscuit, spoons.

It's been a long day! 

I don't follow you? What'da you mean?

Especially if a little girl is diagnosed. 

I evidently don't do humour !

I'm not sure it isn't a human difference globally. If the theory is correct, that every tribal group would need a handful of us, then being genetic and part of every race would make sense.