Australian Retailers Association cancels secret tobacco contract
Share
One of the Australia’s largest industry groups has walked away from a contract worth hundreds of thousands of dollars to lobby for e-cigarettes because the money was secretly sourced from Philip Morris International.
The Australian Retailers Association’s decision last August to end its relationship with global PR firm Burson Cohn & Wolfe, which had channelled funds from Philip Morris, marks the clearest sign that corporate Australia is distancing itself from Big Tobacco.
Australian Retailers Association CEO Paul Zahra was shocked to discover a secret money trail from Philip Morris when he joined the ARA.