Veteran Labor senator Kim Carr is no fan of the Administrative Appeals Tribunal. And given the body’s members are appointed by the Attorney-General to rule over applications of law irrespective of their possessing any legal background, he isn’t alone in arguing it’s become a highly remunerated dumping ground for failed Liberal politicians and retired party apparatchiks.

Last Friday, three dozen Liberal-aligned tribunal members in the high-stakes migration and refugee division were informed that Carr had finally succeeded in prying loose figures on how they were meeting the AAT’s internally set benchmarks.