Flag of New Zealand the Labour Party at their national conference. In November 1979 Minister of Internal Affairs Allan Highet suggested that the design of the flag should be changed, and sought an artist to design a new flag with a silver fern on the fly, but the proposal attracted little support. In March 1994 Prime Minister Jim Bolger made statements supporting a move towards a republic. In response Christian Democrat MP Graeme Lee introduced a Flags, Anthems, Emblems, and Names Protection Amendment Bill. If passed, the Bill would have entrenched the Act that governs the flag and added New Zealand's anthems, requiring a
Flag of New Zealand March. In this referendum, the country voted to keep the existing flag by 57% to 43%. The flag of New Zealand uses two prominent symbols: In its original usage as the flag of United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Union Jack combined three heraldic crosses which represent the countries of the United Kingdom (as constituted in 1801): The Union Jack reflects New Zealand's origins as a British colony. The Southern Cross constellation is one of the striking features of the Southern Hemisphere sky, and has been used to represent New Zealand, among other Southern Hemisphere colonies, since the