General Information » Facts & Figures » National Flag

New Zealand’s flag incorporates a Union Flag against a blue background and four stars that represent the Southern Cross (or Crux), the smallest constellation in the sky, and the most familiar in the Southern Hemisphere.

Its design is very similar to that of the Australian flag, which goes some way to explain why discussions to change the national flag have been ongoing or years. The presence of the Union Flag, a nod to New Zealand’s colonial past, is another sticking point for some Kiwis keen to separate their country’s identity from the UK.

In 1998, National Party Prime Minister Jenny Shipley backed a call for an alternative flag featuring the silver fern on a black background (an image that will be familiar to rugby fans the world over). It’s a debate that rumbles on.

In the meantime, the current design remains in use. The flag is flown on important national occasions such as ANZAC day, and at Waitangi, where the famous treaty of the same name was signed.

Alternatively, a red ensign of the official blue version is also flown during Maori events and on areas of Maori land. This too has a substitute in the form of a 1990 design, The Tino Rangatiratanga flag, which features a stylised white koru (a curl that represents the unfolding of new life) against a red and black background.