India's snub a cause for alarm

Despite this, we have stood idly by as Canada and even those countries with less rigid regulations such as Russia, Kazakhstan, Gabon and Mongolia line up to sell their yellow cake.

But a reversal from Canberra would signal a turning point in our chequered and highly volatile relationship with New Delhi.

Incidents have included the wrongful deportation of Indian doctor Mohamed Haneef in 2007; an outburst of racial tension on the cricket field in 2008; the so-called "curry bashings" of Indian students in Melbourne and other cities in 2009; and the blind introduction of visa requirements last year which threatened to lead to a 70 per cent drop in Indian student entries.

Any cab driver around the world could tell you the damage these events have done, not least of which is the hypocrisy with which they view Australia's sale of uranium to the world's biggest autocracy in China.

For many, whether Mr Singh would agree to widen his CHOGM visit to a bilateral trip was considered a "stress test" for the relationship.

There is little doubt a bilateral program was on the cards if a reversal was to be announced.

But the fact that Mr Singh decided not to show up highlights the damage this policy has now caused for our bilateral relationship.

Ultimately, the best and most courageous foreign policy decisions have never been made by an unelected and unaccountable committee, let alone the ALP National Conference.

Regardless of their decision later this year, it is now urgent that the Prime Minister overturns the ban on uranium exports and resets our relations with the world's biggest democracy and soon to be third biggest economy.