$26m flag gamble for Key

Mark Dawson, Editor of Wanganui Chronicle

John Key likes a flutter - after all, he successfully traded on foreign exchange rate fluctuations for United States investment bank Merrill Lynch for a number of years. That was well before Merrill Lynch spearheaded the 2008 global financial crisis and had to be salvaged by the Bank of America.

The Prime Minister put a few bucks on the Melbourne Cup this week and he is also taking a $26 million gamble on changing the New Zealand flag.

If, after two referenda, the flag doesn't actually change, that will have been a very expensive punt.

The flag debate is very much Key's baby - he's been flagging (sic) the issue for a while and now his whim has its way.

Is there a substantial groundswell of public opinion for change? It's an issue that raises its banner every so often, but still doesn't seem to be of pressing concern. Why the need for change? Key's argument seems to be that he is constantly getting lumped in with Australia (the two emblems are very similar) at international get-togethers. That must be tiresome for him, but is it a $26 million problem?

Key defends the cost as "the price of democracy", but he's been happy to ignore previous referenda ... so what price democracy? The money could surely be put to better use.

There is something rather bogus about the whole enterprise and Key pushing his favoured design doesn't help that impression. If the issue is to be tested, surely it should be done completely outside party political pressures. The PM should have kept his preferences to himself.

Various designs will go to the vote and a challenger to the present flag will be chosen. The supporters of those that miss out may feel sufficiently snubbed to get behind the current flag, which already has strong support.

In short, we may stay as we are. And then we will wonder what it was all about.