Michael McLaren has begun to question how the consumer has allowed the rise of China as he looks at the recent opening of a Pandamart store in Brisbane and how it epitomises the debate Australia should really be having.

He points out that government policy and the free market have played a role in the erasure of Australia’s manufacturing capability and, as a result, diminished Australia’s appetite for manufacturing on home soil.

“The scenes of people queued around the block to get into this place over the weekend was more than a mere curiosity-factor at play – it was yet more evidence that Australian consumers have totally abandoned any sense of putting their money where their mouth is … when we have to put our hand in our wallet, the majority go for the cheapest item on the shelf and that item is almost never Australian,” he said.

“We mourn the loss of Australian brands and shopfronts and yet more and more of us then actively support Shein and Temu. As they say, you can’t have it both ways,” he added.

Listen to more highlights from Afternoons below:

Image: Nine News