National colours of Canada red "in recognition of Canada's official colours". The proclamation accepts both colours for the maple leaves, stating ""three maple leaves conjoined on one stem proper"", in which "proper" refers to the natural colour of the leaves, which is green in spring and summer, and red in autumn. It was not until 1961, with the creation of The Queen's Personal Canadian Flag, that red and white became entrenched as the national colours. For the Federal Identity Program operated by the Treasury Board Secretariat of the Government of Canada, official and signage colours are specified in technical specification T-145. The red colour
Flag of Europe yellow colours, and the stars, although of a different number and colour, are a direct reference to those of the European flag. Likewise, Kosovo uses blue, yellow and stars in its flag, which has been mocked as "a none too subtle nod to the flag of the European Union, which is about to become Kosovo's new best friend as it takes over protector status from the United Nations". The flag of the Brussels-Capital Region (introduced in 2016) consists of a yellow iris with a white outline upon a blue background. Its colours are based on the colours of the Flag