Greens' Senator, Christine Milne, says the prime minister's suggestion of using nuclear power in Australia was made to help promote the sale of uranium to China and India.
John Howard yesterday raised the possibility of adopting nuclear power if it was economically viable and said it was hypocritical to sell the fuel to other countries without considering its use domestically.
But Labor and the Greens are accusing Mr Howard of attempting to build a case that would favour the sale of more uranium to China and India.
Senator Milne says that nuclear power is not a viable option for Australia because of the cost, the problems associated with storing waste, and the government should be investigating other power options.