(Newser) – An Australian mayor thinks he has a solution for the crisis facing his town: More ugly girls. Men outnumber women 5-to-1 in Mount Isa, so John Molony is begging women, particularly desperate ones, to migrate there. “Often those who are beauty-disadvantaged are uphappy with their lot,” he said. “Some… need to proceed to Mount Isa where happiness awaits.”

The girl shortage is so severe, he reasons, that even the ugliest ducklings become swans. “Quite often you will see walking down the street a lass who is not so attractive with a wide smile on her face,” he said. Many men in town agreed with the mayor’s assessment. “Blokes are not as picky—you take what you can get,” said one bachelor, while another dubbed Mount Isa “the beer goggle capital of Australia.” (Read more Australia stories.)

