Victorian Premier Denis Napthine has angrily accused Labor of gutter politics over allegations he tried to influence the mayoral vote in Ballarat.
Dr Napthine was last week questioned in parliament by Labor's Ballarat West MP, Sharon Knight, about whether he sought to directly influence the ballot to ensure a Liberal member was installed as Ballarat's next mayor.
It came after a Ballarat councillor reportedly said then mayor John Burt had briefed councillors to say the premier wanted a Liberal-aligned mayor to lead the council.
The premier labelled the accusations outrageous and told a budget estimates hearing on Tuesday that Ms Knight should apologise for the "gutter politics".
"Baseless allegations were raised in the parliament by the member for Ballarat West, who ought to be ashamed of herself for raising such scurrilous allegations against councillor John Burt," Dr Napthine said.
"He only has the interests of the Ballarat community at heart and he has been absolutely pilloried by some disgusting low-life allegations from the member for Ballarat West and her fellow Labor conspirators."
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