Opposition Leader Tony Abbott has accused the government of electoral bribery over its decision to hand $250 million to the free-to-air TV networks.
Mr Abbott on Tuesday suggested the decision to slash more than $250 million from commercial TV licence fees amounted to a bribe to court media favour ahead of the federal election.
"It looks pretty dodgy to me," Mr Abbott said during an interview on DMG Radio in Adelaide.
"It looks like at this stage, unless the government can justify much better than it has so far, you've got to say that it looks like an election year bribe.
"Maybe there is more to this which the government hasn't told us about but at the moment it doesn't look good. It looks like they're buying favourable coverage."
Communications Minister Stephen Conroy has been criticised over the decision after it was revealed he met with Seven Network boss Kerry Stokes on a skiing trip in the US a month before it was announced.
A spokesperson for Senator Conroy said the rebate was about protecting local content during the switchover to digital television but there were no conditions attached to the rebates.
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