Premier Denis Napthine has been accused of sending misleading political advertising, spruiking the east-west link road tunnel, to thousands of residents in Melbourne's east.
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A letter outlining the purported benefits of the tunnel was sent to residents along the Eastern Freeway last week and was funded by the Liberal Party, anxious about selling the $6 billion to $8 billion project to voters in Melbourne's east before the federal election.
It comes as federal Opposition Leader Tony Abbott confirmed he had not seen the business case or any traffic projections for the tunnel before committing $1.5 billion to the project.
He told ABC radio on Tuesday night he had discussed the project with ''people who are deeply, deeply, deeply familiar with it'' and had been convinced it was the best road project in Victoria.
State opposition scrutiny of government spokesman Martin Pakula said the letter was misleading and disguised Liberal Party election material as an official government document.
He said the use of the executive crest, the 1 Treasury Place address, the Premier's signature and the absence of any mention of the Liberal Party was inappropriate. He would raise his concerns with the Victorian Ombudsman.
''The use of official-looking documentation on what is effectively Liberal Party election advertising demonstrates the Liberal Party is not prepared to come clean with people on this project,'' Mr Pakula said.
The letter also coincides with growing disquiet about the tunnel, with recent polling conducted for Labor by ReachTell revealing that the majority of voters in the marginal seats of Narre Warren North, Ivanhoe and Carrum do not think the east-west link should be the state government's most important transport policy.
Dr Napthine said the letter provided residents with vital information on the project and how it would benefit their community.
''It's very important that all Victorians are aware of the benefits of the east-west link project. Just the same as CityLink made a real difference to Melbourne, east-west link will make a real difference to Melbourne and Victoria, not just for those directly affected but for decongesting the whole of Melbourne,'' he said.
The letter says ''no taxpayer funds have been used in the production and distribution of this material''. It does not breach any electoral laws because it is addressed to residents, and therefore appropriately authorised.
The Napthine government has ramped up its efforts to sell the project after Labor last month announced it would oppose the tunnel.
State Labor has sent letters to voters in the marginal south-eastern seats of Frankston, Carrum, Mordialloc and Bentleigh, warning them the tunnel will have ''no benefit for the vast majority of Victorians''.
