Kevin Rudd's election promise to make it illegal for any political party to receive funds from big tobacco has prompted a voluntary retreat by Tony Abbott.
In a dramatic U-turn, the Liberal leader said the issue was a distraction on Thursday, but revealed he would order his party to cease taking money from tobacco interests effective immediately.
The decision ends the largely unknown but pervasive financial manipulation of Australian politics by cigarette firms.
Mr Abbott's concession followed a Labor pledge, reported by Fairfax Media on Thursday, to legislate, if re-elected, a blanket ban on all political parties and candidates accepting tobacco donations.
It means the federal Liberal Party will no longer have access to a secure and lucrative funding source that has brought the two Coalition parties a combined $3 million at least since 1999.
The Nationals, the Liberals' junior partner, have yet to follow suit.
The news of a bipartisan commitment to block tobacco involvement in federal politics was welcomed by health campaigners.
Anne Jones, chief executive of the group Action on Smoking and Health, said it was ''a great result'' after ASH had written to Mr Rudd earlier this month proposing the donations ban.
She called on the Coalition to match Mr Rudd's promise to require all public-sector superannuation funds to divest themselves of all tobacco-related shares and investments.
''We urge all political parties and all Australian governments to adopt whole-of-government tobacco divestment policies,'' she said.
Labor has promised to amend the Commonwealth Electoral Act 1918 to ban donations from tobacco companies to all Australian political parties and candidates.
''Tobacco companies themselves have admitted they only donate to political parties to try to influence policy,'' Mr Rudd told Fairfax Media.
The strategy would require the divestment of tobacco investments by all public sector superannuation funds.
Describing the tobacco ban as a deliberate Labor distraction, Mr Abbott said he was taking the action so the election campaign could focus on the main issues.
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