Big tobacco companies appear to be taking the offensive this time against the Labor government's anti-smoking campaign as the Daily Telegraph reported on Wednesday that the Alliance of Australian Retailers (AAR) paid for a full-page advertisement in tomorrow's newspapers outlining its apposition on the federal government's policy against cigarette use.

The 19,000-strong AAR, which represents corner stores, gasoline stations and newsagents, said that they were opposed to Labor's directive of requiring retailers to sell in plain packaging by 2012, stressing that "there's no credible evidence that this policy will stop people from smoking, that it will stop kids, young people, taking up cigarette smoking."

AAR spokeswoman Sheryle Moon said that small businesses are strongly dependent on cigarette sales and the new government's policy would only make it harder for retailers to conduct business and not discourage consumers from buying the product, besides the fact that "plain packaging is not a proven policy."

Ms Moon said that the retailer's advertisement move is reflective of their discontent on the new measures which at best would only sow confusion on systems currently utilised by small retailers since plain packaging would render cigarette brands looking all the same, possibly adding more time and effort in running an efficient business operation.

She also confirmed an ABC report that three cigarette manufacturers were bankrolling the group's ad campaigns though she asserted that the funding issue should not eclipse the ads purpose of determining if the government's new policy was based on hard facts and evidence.

However, Health Minister Nicola Roxon said that the group's campaign initiative against a government policy runs counter on opposition leader Tony Abbot's earlier pronouncements, which begs some serious explaining from Mr Abbot.

Ms Roxon said that the campaign being supported by giant tobacco companies is "an unprecedented intervention by big tobacco into an election campaign and Mr Abbott needs to come clean on whether he's made any commitments to his friends in big tobacco to convince them to take this unprecedented step,"

Mr Abbot declared though that he and any member of the Liberal Party were not supporting any campaigns that undermine the government's anti-smoking policy as he stressed that "he had absolutely nothing to do with any sort of pro-smoking campaign."