An Experimental Offensive against the Mishandling of Risk in Society’: Reflecting on the Pioneering Work of the Risk Regulation Advisory Council in the UK

This article looks back at the history and legacy of the Risk and Regulation Advisory Council in the UK. The Council was the first government body to explicitly challenge a culture of overreaction to ‘public risk’, one of a number of ways in which it was a unique and interesting experiment in addressing the political dimension of contemporary regulation. Whilst the RRAC was ultimately unsuccessful in bringing about a change in how risk is managed by government it has, at least, left a useful intellectual legacy and, more practically, its work is effectively being taken forward by the Risk and Responsibility programme of the Dutch government.