Taxpayer-funded adviser probed over tape leak

A senior Abbott Government adviser is the prime suspect in a leaked tape scandal that has rocked Victorian Premier Denis Napthine's government.

The tape is a recording of former premier Ted Baillieu speaking to The Age reporter Farrah Tomazin, which includes private comments Mr Baillieu made that were critical of some parliamentary colleagues, Fairfax Media reports.

Fairfax says the tape went missing when Tomazin's Dictaphone was stolen sometime last month.

Following an IT probe of computer records, the Victorian Liberty Party is now investigating a taxpayer-funded adviser from a federal cabinet minister's office as well as a second suspect who works in the state public service for distributing the tape via email, both Fairfax and the Herald Sun are reporting.

The email was sent on Tuesday from a Liberal Party member (who does not exist) to a mailing list of Liberal Party MPs and members that had been compiled by someone who had improperly accessed the party's membership records.

The incident suggests a dirty tricks campaign aimed at destabilising Victoria's state government and undermining rivals in the Liberal Party.

The scandal has been a damaging distraction for the Napthine government, which is trailing well behind Labor in the latest polls.

It may also now prove to be a nuisance for one of the Abbott Government's senior ministers.