No Sheep! New Zealand Reveals New Flag Shortlist

Common themes among the 40 flag offerings are silver ferns, the symbol used by New Zealand sports teams, and the Southern Cross constellation.

The 40-design shortlist of flags which might replace New Zealand’s current flag following national referendums to be held later this year and in March 2016.

The chosen 40 flags will now undergo robust checks, including intellectual property reviews, to make sure they could work as the New Zealand flag, before being narrowed down to just four in September.

The country’s current 112-year-old flag is under threat as New Zealand’s 4.5 million citizens are offered the chance to bin it, during a process involving two referendums at a cost of more than $25m (£10.6m).

Prime Minister John Key favours changing the flag, claiming the existing design is often mistaken for Australia’s.

A government-appointed panel charged with deciding a potential new flag for New Zealand unveiled a long list of 40 designs Monday.

New Zealanders on social media were quick to respond to the list of flags, though some expressed concerns whether the flag referendum was a good use of taxpayers’ money.

ONE News was met with a resounding “no” when it asked New Zealanders what new flag design they would vote for from the 40 possible contenders. Another popular motif found on the proposals is the koru – a Maori symbol that represents the spiral of a fern frond as it unfolds.

Key has said the current flag symbolizes New Zealand’s colonial past, but has distanced any change in the flag from calls for New Zealand to become a republic, saying the country retains strong links to the British monarchy. And that design that allegedly resembles the Islamic State flag – which it really doesn’t! – made the cut.

“A great flag should be distinctive and so simple it can be drawn by a child from memory”, wrote the panel in an open letter about the new designs.

“It should speak to all Kiwis”, the panel added.

As part of the review process, the panel worked with a range of cultural and design experts, as well as specialists in vexillology – the study of flags – to determine which submissions would be viable options. “We have selected the longlist designs that we believe best reflect the values New Zealanders have shared with us and you can view these in the longlist gallery”.