New Zealand to hold Canadian-inspired referendum on ‘colonial-era’ national flag

Nearly fifty years after Canada unveiled its national flag and introduced the world to perhaps the most iconic symbol of national pride, another Commonwealth nation is similarly considering whether to do away with its Union Jack-adorned flag.

It was announced this week that New Zealand would hold a referendum on the fate of its current flag during the next parliamentary term. That depends, of course, on the current government surviving a September election.

The move comes as New Zealand officials debate the merits of its symbolic ties to the United Kingdom, and you may be surprised to learn that Canada plays a role in inspiring the potential shift.

Prime Minister John Key has said that, in the next three years, the good people of New Zealand will vote in a referendum on whether to abandon its current national flag in exchange for a more modern alternative.

New Zealand's flag is similar to Australia's (and comparable to several Canadian provincial flags) in that it features the Union Jack in a top corner.

Key called the inclusion of the Union Jack – the official flag of the U.K. – a symbol of a bygone era. “It’s my belief, and I think one increasingly shared by many New Zealanders, that the design of the New Zealand flag symbolises a colonial and post-colonial era whose time has passed,” he said, per The Guardian.

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Like many Commonwealth nations, New Zealand occasionally struggles with its historic place as an outpost led by British royalty. Much like Canada, there are groups that would see the country cut its ties to the monarchy and establish itself as an independent republic.

Some in New Zealand see removing the Union Jack from the country’s national flag as the first step in severing ties with Britain, for better or worse. Of course, if Canada is any indication, it is not an overnight shift.

Canada replaced the Union Jack-adorned Red Ensign as its national symbol with the current red and white model featuring that bold, sharp maple leaf in the centre in 1965, nearly 50 years ago. It didn’t portend an immediate revolution against the monarchy, but it did give Canada a national symbol to rally behind.

“That old flag represented Canada as it was once, rather than as it is now." Key said, according to the Guardian newspaper. "Similarly, I think our flag represents us as we were once, rather than as we are now."

Key further recommended several potential replacements, but notably the silver-fern-on-black style made famous by the country’s All Black rugby team. Which would be apt, considering Canada’s current flag is also commonly mistaken as the logo of the national hockey team.

As a further note, it may be smart for New Zealand to let a referendum decide the fate of the country's flag. When Canada considered its own change, divisions grew so deep and debates grew so testy in parliament that Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson was forced to use the rules of closure to end the political debate and force a vote. That's the 1960s Canadian equivalent to an all-out brawl.

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