The Kerr Report’s vision for the Administrative Review Council and the (sad) modern reality

The Administrative Review Council (ARC) was a vital part of the Kerr Committee’s recommendations for increased oversight of executive decisions that impact individuals. The Kerr Committee recorded that ‘fundamental to our system for the introduction of a proper system of administrative review, both on the law and on the merits, is a continuously operating Council…’. Notice the words ‘continuously operating’: the permanence of the Council was a deliberate design feature of the ARC as initially conceived. Sadly, this vision has not been followed, although the original justifications for the ARC remain compelling and the statutory obligations linger unperformed.