Royal Australia and New Zealand College of Radiologists president Matthew Andrews said the population base in south-west Victoria was large enough to support a licence grant and was concerned the process had been caught up in red tape.

He said the college was concerned by a recent trend where some patients opted not to have CT scans conducted on their bodies because they were concerned about radiation levels.

"I would have thought Warrnambool's population would more than justify an MRI machine," Dr Andrews told The Standard.

"There appears to be a huge vacuum for MRI services in the western half of Victoria.

"I've heard about Warrnambool's plight and it disappoints me that even in 2010 that patients in regional and rural areas have to travel hours by car to receive an MRI scan which takes only minutes."

Dr Andrews claimed Australia had one of the lowest levels of patient access to MRI among Western nations with 5.6 machines per million people compared with the developed nation average of 11 per million in 2007.

He encouraged the federal government to expand MRI access in regional areas.

"The problem of restricted access to MRI is not the fault of GPs or radiologists and is something that the gederal government can fix," Dr Andrews said.

"The Health Minister (Nicola Roxon) could grant a licence tomorrow but the process is so slow.

"It costs the Government to transport patients to and from metropolitan areas like Warrnambool to Melbourne so no savings are really being made by holding out on an MRI licence."

All three declared Wannon candidates - Ralph Leutton, Katrina Rainsford and Daniel Tehan - have backed the push for an MRI licence to be granted for Warrnambool.

Liberal candidate Mr Tehan organised a petition with more than 35 signatories from doctors across the electorate which was given to Health Minister Nicola Roxon .