The Australian Sex Party will launch its NT election campaign today, claiming that Sex Party preferences in five marginal seats, could hold the key to the election result. In the last NT Senate election, the Sex Party secured 5.5% of the vote.

The party’s well-known national President, Fiona Patten, will launch the party’s platform with local small business operator and NT Campaign Director, Peter Burnheim, at the main entrance to Parliament House, at 11am on Monday, 13th August.

Ms Patten ran in the recent by election for the seat of Melbourne and came in third with almost 7% of the vote. Her preferences allowed the ALP to come from behind and take the seat.

She said the party’s campaign slogan, ‘Sex, Drugs and Rock ‘n Roll’ would resonate with the huge numbers of Territorians who were sick of the Nanny State that was being foisted on them by both major parties.

‘Our slogan strikes a chord much deeper than the ‘suits’ and the moral campaigners (who influence both major parties) would have you believe’, she said. ‘We are demanding better sex education in the NT that is known to be successful in reducing not only sexually transmitted infections but sexual violence as well. We want a Royal Commission initiated by the NT government into child sex abuse in the church, legalising all forms of sex work and an end to censorship of adult media and products. We are also campaigning for evidenced-based drug law reform, no internet filtering in the NT and no data retention legislation’.

NT Campaign Director and candidate for Fong Lim, Peter Bernheim, said the NT should lead the country in decriminalising and regulating the market place in recreational drugs. ‘The majority of people in NT jails are in there for crimes related to substance abuse’, he said. ‘Drugs and alcohol should be regulated within the health portfolio and not in the criminal justice one. Portugal did this 10 years ago and is now reaping the benefits with fewer drug-related deaths and lower drug usage rates. The NT approach from both major parties is to move drug policy toward the Mexican model and we all know how devastating that approach has been’.

He also said that he wanted to see increased tax breaks for local small businesses. ‘If we taxed the wealthy religious institutions instead of giving them free handouts, tax levies on small businesses could be reduced’, he said. ‘We also want to see protection of live music venues and more funding to help young musicians get off the ground”.