Sydney - Fed up with its flag being confused with Australia's, New Zealand on Tuesday unveiled four possible options for a revamped ensign - and none of them feature the Union Flag.
Three of the designs that made the shortlist, from more than 10 000 entries submitted by the public, feature the native silver fern, already the country's unofficial national emblem.
The fourth depicts a koru, or unfurling fern frond, a traditional Maori symbol of new life and beginnings.
The Prime Minister, John Key, who instigated the NZ$26m (£10.75m) flag-changing exercise, is a fan of the silver fern, already used as a logo by the All Blacks rugby team and other national sporting outfits. However, many New Zealanders were underwhelmed by the final four designs, chosen by the excitingly named Flag Consideration Committee.
Writing in The New Zealand Herald, commentator Karl Puschmann said the country had squandered a “once in a lifetime chance to reinvent ourselves, to assert ourselves, to rally behind a symbol that showed the world who we are and what we stand for”.
Others regretted that popular designs, such as a kiwi shooting green laser beams out of its eyes, failed to make the finalists.
A referendum in November or December will give people the chance to pick their favourite design. Then, in a second referendum in March next year, the winner will be pitted against the existing flag, which features a Union Flag in one corner and a scattering of stars representing the Southern Cross. Australia's flag also features a Southern Cross constellation and a Union Flag in one corner.
Mr Key wants New Zealand to have a more distinctive identity, and one that more accurately reflects its modern character and outlook.
The Independent