Sydney (dpa) - An Outback town where males outnumber females five to one is in an uproar over the mayor's promise to Australia's not-so-pretty women that there's a mate for them in Mount Isa.

John Malony on Wednesday refused to withdraw his claim that the scarcity of women meant the "beauty-disadvantaged" should make a beeline for the dusty Queensland mining town.

Adding insult to injury, Malony refused to leave his office to meet a delegation of 100 single women outraged by his remarks, describing them as "beauty-disadvantaged themselves."

The spat has extended to the national political arena with some members of Parliament condemning Malony and others praising him for being honest.

"He's just letting people know it's good fun to be a woman in Mount Isa," lawmaker Bob Katter said. "We're all rednecks up here. We don't carry it around as a badge of shame. We carry it around as a badge of honour."

Malony said his view that marriage to a Mount Isa man could transform "an ugly duckling into a beautiful swan" had drawn wide support.

"I've got e-mails from people all over the world telling me that they like someone who talks straight," the mayor said. (dpa)