Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party manufactures campaign gear in China

A candidate for the United Australia Party has quit after he discovered the party’s campaign merchandise was made in China.

United Australia Party campaign merchandise. Picture: Facebook.

A candidate for Clive Palmer’s United Australia Party has quit after he discovered the party’s campaign merchandise was manufactured in China.

Bryan Wiseman, who was contesting the NSW seat of Cook, left the party after noticing a “Made in China” tag on UAP shirts and caps, despite the party’s key campaign message stating they will work towards stopping jobs being exported to China.

“The party’s entire platform is about creating jobs in Australia and the guy couldn’t even pay Australian workers to make his clothing,” Mr Wiseman told The Daily Telegraph.

“As soon as I saw the shirts I knew the entire operation was a circus and I resigned. To think a billionaire who is running on job creation would do this is insane.”

Bryan Wiseman has quit the United Australia Party. Picture: UAP website.

The United Australia Party has run ad campaigns critical of China and their “threat to Australia’s national security” throughout the election campaign, with their lead slogan reading “make Australia great”.

One flyer states the United Australia Party supports Australians who are “the fabric of the nation”.

“We need a real manufacturing industry in areas where we have the economic advantage, rather than exporting jobs to China and Japan,” the party’s document says.

One of the plastic-wrapped shirts with a ‘made in China’ tag. Picture: Facebook

In another UAP ad, opposition leader Bill Shorten was attacked over his party’s supposed ties with “communist China”.

“Chinese communist-owned companies with the help of the Labor Party built and constructed a private jet airport,” the ad claimed.

Clive Palmer said in a statement on Wednesday the media needed to “stop trivialising the issue” but would not comment on Mr Wiseman’s departure from the party.

“Our policies are about protecting our strategic assets such as ports, airports and gas infrastructure from foreign government ownership … This has nothing to do with T-shirts,” he said.