The Victorian Liberal MP launched a survey for Indigo Council residents on his website earlier this month.

It follows on from a similar questionnaire for Wodonga Council ratepayers being posted last year.

“It’s just to better connect with the community and to get a better understanding,” Mr Tilley said of the survey.

“It is useful information for when we have meetings with local government and for when we’re developing policy for when we form government.”

Survey respondents were asked which issue they rated as most important and about their satisfaction levels with services such as roads, rubbish and tourism.

Cr O’Connor, who stood against Mr Tilley as a Greens candidate in the 2010 Victorian election, embraced the questionnaire.

“I think it’s good Bill is showing an interest in what his local constituents think about a range of issues, that’s why he was elected,” Cr O’Connor said.

However, the mayor pondered where state matters fitted into Mr Tilley’s approach.

“I’m interested that he’s focusing on Indigo Shire rather than the state government and his role in state parliament,” Cr O’Connor said.

“I would also be interested in whether he’s surveying people to see if they are satisfied with his role in the State Parliament and what issues they want him to address for them at a state level – that would include things like health, education and funding for services at local government level.”

Mr Tilley said the Liberal Party conducted a telephone poll involving about 20,000 calls to Benambra electors late last year, which asked about his conduct and state issues.

He said the view on his performance was that it was “pretty good”.

Mr Tilley has never released the results of his survey of Wodonga residents.

“It was a good-sized sample but just used for internal public policy development,” he said.