CANBERRA, AUSTRALIA — Every other economic sector may fail during the looming worldwide recession, but according to Australia’s newest political party, porn will thrive.The economic downturn already has stimulated sales of sex toys and adult movies in Australia, Australian Sex Party chairwoman Fiona Patten told The Daily Telegraph.

“Some adult shops are saying business has never been better,” Patten said.

She has a hypothesis about why: When times are tough, people go for cheap thrills.

“Some retailers are saying when people start to worry about their finances and they’re worrying about the economy, they go and buy a vibrator or an adult film,” Patten noted. “While they’re cutting out going to dinner and going to the movies, they’re popping into an adult shop. [Adult products are] a cheap luxury that can make you feel good.”

Feeling good may become increasingly important in Australia’s struggling economy, where the jobless rate is climbing. The government’s proposed mandatory internet filter is projected to block more than 10,000 adult websites, consequently costing as many as 16,000 adult-industry jobs.

“If they go ahead with what they propose, it’ll wipe out the adult industry in the next five years,” Patten told The Daily Telegraph. “The Australian Sex Party would probably be filtered out because we have sex and party in the name.”

The party, launched November 18th, gained more than 1,000 members during its first week in existence, Patten revealed. She was gratified, if a bit surprised, by the vigor with which Australians have embraced the party and its goals, she said.

“People are sick of not being treated like adults when it comes to issues involving censorship and personal choices, and they’re certainly sick of living in a nanny state where religious minorities are influencing the agenda,” she said.