Finality of remand findings bars reopening of CaO-content condition in exemption dispute.

The Tribunal held that a finding in an earlier remand order on the CaO-content condition could not be reopened in later remand proceedings when the Department had not challenged that finding. The remand had been limited to examining the remaining requirements under the licence, DEEC scheme and exemption notification, and the original authority had found those other conditions satisfied. Re-agitating the CaO issue would amount to impermissible review of the Tribunal's earlier decision. The Tribunal therefore confined the dispute to the scope of the prior remand and declined to interfere with the Commissioner's order.

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Issues: Whether the Department could, in the remand proceedings, challenge the finding that the condition relating to CaO content had already been decided against it, and whether the denial of exemption could be revisited notwithstanding the earlier unchallenged remand order.

Analysis: The earlier remand order had expressly recorded a finding that the imported limestone did not satisfy the CaO-content condition, while remanding the matter only for examination of the remaining conditions under the licence, DEEC scheme and exemption notification. No appeal had been filed by the Department against that finding. In the fresh proceedings, the original authority accepted compliance with the other conditions. Re-agitating the CaO issue would amount to reviewing the Tribunal's earlier decision, which was beyond the Tribunal's power in the present appeal. The Tribunal therefore confined itself to the scope of the earlier remand and declined to interfere with the Commissioner's order.

Conclusion: The Department could not reopen the concluded CaO-content finding in the remand proceedings, and the exemption could not be denied on that basis in this appeal.

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