Federal Liberal candidate Georgina Downer was given a heads up on a confidential hospital funding bid by the SA Liberal Government, in an apparent attempt to boost her election chances in the key seat of Mayo.

Key points: An email obtained through FOI shows Ms Downer was alerted to funding for regional hospitals

An email obtained through FOI shows Ms Downer was alerted to funding for regional hospitals The Opposition says the State Government tried to "tip the scales" in her favour

The Opposition says the State Government tried to "tip the scales" in her favour Ms Downer says she was pleased she was able to help secure the funding

A paper trail uncovered through Freedom of Information (FOI) by the Opposition shows Ms Downer was emailed two documents on February 1, marked as Cabinet submissions in their file names, containing details of regional hospital funding bids.

The email was sent by Health Minister Stephen Wade's chief of staff to Ms Downer at her Liberal Party email address, and contained proposals for $8.41 million in funding for the South Coast Hospital in Victor Harbor, and $8.55 million for the Mount Barker Hospital.

Georgina Downer places her vote in last year's Mayo by-election. ( ABC News: Isabel Dayman )

Nineteen days later, on February 20, Ms Downer specifically made calls in the media for $8.41 million for the South Coast Hospital and $8.55 million for the Mount Barker Hospital.

The Mount Barker funding was announced by the Federal Government eight days later, on February 28, while funding for the other project in Victor Harbor was announced on April 26, at Ms Downer's campaign launch.

"I'm sure there would've been a good understanding that this would've been in the works," Labor's health spokesman Chris Picton said.

"It would've been giving the wink-wink, nudge-nudge to Georgina Downer to say 'go out and campaign for this now … you can look like you're the champion on this issue'.

"They were trying to tip the scales to help her win that seat. Clearly that didn't work."

Minister said local MP chose 'a political stunt'

Less than a fortnight after his chief of staff alerted Ms Downer to the funding bid, Mr Wade stood up in State Parliament to thank her for raising Mount Barker health issues with him, while criticising her electoral opponent.

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"[Ms Downer has] written to me and lobbied me on a number of occasions to make sure the health needs of their communities are heard," he told Parliament on February 13.

"I note that the Federal member for Mayo, Rebekha Sharkie, has also recognised this need; I was just surprised to read about it in the local paper.

"To date, I have not received correspondence from the member for Mayo … instead, she has chosen a political stunt."

Labor claims breach of ministerial code

The documents provided to the Opposition were partially redacted, because they were "documents affecting intergovernmental or local governmental relations".

It does not appear they were redacted when given to Ms Downer.

"They thought it was fine for one citizen — who happened to be a Liberal Party candidate — to see those Cabinet attachments when the rest of the public can't," Mr Picton said.

"What the Government is saying now is [that the documents] potentially could affect Commonwealth-state relations, but she was given those documents back then in the heat of the election campaign.

"They should be kept confidential and that has always been the practice."

The state's Ministerial Code of Conduct requires ministers to maintain the confidence of Cabinet decisions, documents and deliberations, and may not disclose Cabinet discussions to anyone else.

"A Minister who deliberately or recklessly breaches Cabinet confidentiality, should resign from the Ministry," the code of conduct states.

Mr Picton said the disclosure of documents to Ms Downer was a clear breach of the code of conduct.

Alexander Downer with daughter Georgina on the campaign trail. ( Kelly Barnes )

Health Minister Stephen Wade said he "makes no apologies" for working with Federal counterparts.

"I'm really proud of the achievements in the recent election … these are tangible demonstrations of the value of working together," he said.

"The information that was provided to Georgina Downer was information that was [on] an application to the Commonwealth Government.

"She was a candidate to be a member of that Government."

When asked if the public would take a dim view of this sort of campaigning, Mr Wade said he thought "the public is delighted with investments in country facilities".

Georgina Downer said she worked with the State Government from late last year to lobby the Federal Government for Mayo hospital funding.

"I am pleased we were able to secure this funding, ensuring Hills and Fleurieu residents can access the best quality health care, close to home," she told the ABC.

Documents likely gave Downer 'unfair advantage'

Rob Manwaring, senior politics lecturer at Flinders University, said all political parties did what they could to help their candidates with information.

However, he said that this case "strikes me as at a very strong end of that range".

"One of the things that has been apparent with Georgina's candidacy is that a number of times she seems to have had access to information and certainly has high access to ministers within the Government that perhaps other candidates haven't had," Dr Manwaring said.

"It's information that's certainly not publicly available and would probably give her an unfair advantage."

He said the documents raised the question about whether there had been a breach of the Ministerial Code of Conduct.

"This is a document that perhaps might be covered by those provisions," he said.

Ms Downer came under fire earlier in her campaign when she handed over a novelty cheque to a bowling club with her face and Liberal branding.