Reports have surfaced suggesting trouble in the Clive Palmer empire.

According to The Australian the mining magnate has urgently written to a Chinese company that owes him money, saying thousands of jobs are at risk if he’s not bailed-out soon.

In a leaked March letter to CITIC, the creditor that owes him around $200 million, Palmer wrote: “If the loss of employment to over 1000 Australian families results from (CITIC) failing to honour their obligations to Australian companies, it will do irreparable damage to the goodwill between the respective parties and between Australia and China’s relations.”

The report follows an in-depth analysis of Mr Palmers business and personal finances, it claims the man that wants to be PM is “desperate for cash”. The reports says his key businesses – a nickel refinery in Townsville and the Palmer Coolum Resort – have been piling up financial losses. Palmer is accusing the newspaper of running a “beat-up article” on him.

Despite the reported financial troubles, Palmer has continued campaigning with the recently-formed Palmer United Party, appearing in Melbourne over the weekend to spruik his policies. He’s claimed he would be willing to accept the meagre life of a politician if elected, saying "I have got to have a plane that is not as good as the one I have, live in a house that is not as good as the house that I have got with a salary that's not as good as the salary that I have got. So I am prepared to do that because if we don't do something to stop this mediocrity, we will lose Australia."