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There won’t be a public holiday to mark King Charles’ coronation, the Government has confirmed.
Buckingham Palace confirmed on Wednesday morning the King will be officially coronated at Westminster Abbey on May 6 (local time).
A spokesperson for the Prime Minister said New Zealand will "look at how we can appropriately celebrate the coronation of King Charles next year now the date has been confirmed".
But there won’t be an official public holiday like Kiwis got to commemorate the Queen following her death.
"We won’t be making the coronation a public holiday in New Zealand. May 6 falls on a Sunday our time, which means there’s an opportunity for many people to watch the coronation and mark this special occasion in other ways too if they wish to."
While Charles automatically became the King following the death of Queen Elizabeth II in September, a coronation ceremony is tradition dating back more than 1000 years. It’s considered a religious event and is conducted by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
"The ceremony will see His Majesty King Charles III crowned alongside The Queen Consort," a palace statement said. "The coronation will reflect the monarch’s role today and look towards the future, while being rooted in longstanding traditions and pageantry."
It will be the first coronation of a British monarch in nearly 70 years. At the time of her death, Queen Elizabeth was one of the longest-reigning monarchs in history – she became Queen in 1952 and was coronated in 1953 – and Charles was the longest-serving heir apparent in British history.
King Charles III is the oldest person to become the British monarch.
New Zealand had a public holiday on September 26 to mark the Queen’s death. A state memorial service was held on the same day at the Wellington Cathedral of St Paul and attended by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern and the Governor-General.
"As New Zealand’s Queen and much loved Sovereign for over 70 years, it is appropriate that we mark her life of dedicated public service with a State Memorial Service and a one-off public holiday," Ardern said at the time.
"Queen Elizabeth II was an extraordinary person and I know many New Zealanders will appreciate the opportunity to both mark her death and celebrate her life."
However, the decision to have a public holiday came under some fire from the likes of the ACT Party and BusinessNZ.
"New Zealanders are feeling the loss of the Queen, she was a true leader who selflessly served the Commonwealth every day of her life. The Government should be asking itself, though, ‘Is it fair to put another $450 million of costs onto business in the middle of a cost of living crisis?’" ACT leader David Seymour said.
"Treasury estimate an extra public holiday costs $450 million. We doubt the Queen, who was famous for being a careful spender, would endorse such extravagance when people are struggling to make ends meet."
BusinessNZ chief executive Kirk Hope said a public holiday was a "bridge too far".