PRESS RELEASE

24 March 2016

Flag Referendum Great. Process Wrong!

The Conservative Party's number one policy is Binding Referenda. We applaud the fact that an issue as important as our National Flag was put to the people to vote on via a referendum.

However, the Conservative Party totally disagrees with the process in which it was done, and the unnecessary financial costs involved.

"Imagine how much money could have been saved and put into important sectors such as health and education, if the first referendum was based on whether or not New Zealanders even wanted to change the current flag. And if that had coincided with a general election that would have really saved some money," says Leighton Baker, Conservative Party Spokesman.

"Referenda don’t have to be expensive, and making them all binding, rather than just the ones the PM wants, would be a far more democratic process.

"We look forward to the result of the referenda and are pleased that New Zealanders finally got a say on something. Maybe next time it could be more efficiently done, and on a topic proposed by the people," says Mr Baker.

ENDS

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