Uranium sales to India
Friday, 18 November 2011
The Prime Minister should immediately announce that the Government will permit sales of Australian uranium to India and not wait for approval from the gathering of her union bosses at this year's Labor Party conference.It is inappropriate for the Prime Minister to outsource Australia's foreign and trade policy to the Labor conference and she should take full responsibility for the decision.
The dysfunctional relationship between the Prime Minister and Foreign Minister has been exposed once again by the Prime Minister's failure to consult Kevin Rudd about this important issue.
While Labor should never have reversed the Coalition decision in 2007 to allow sales of uranium to India, there are serious strategic and diplomatic implications from the decision to overturn the ban.
It is unacceptable for this announcement to have been made without prior consultation with the Foreign Minister and for it to be carefully considered by his Department.
This mistake was compounded by the fact Mr Rudd was in India at the time and it could have compromised his discussions with the Indian government, where the ban on uranium sales was very likely to have been discussed.
The toxic relationship between the Prime Minister and the Foreign Minister is now having a direct impact on issues of national and international importance, and must be resolved.
