Most still back monarchy over republic

Only a third of New Zealanders think New Zealand should be an independent republic, with half in favour of retaining the Queen as head of state, new research shows.

The results of the mail survey, conducted between September and November last year, were released this week by Massey University's department of marketing.

As well as republicanism, the survey addressed citizenship, democratic rights and the role of the public service.

Results were taken from the responses of 1350 randomly selected New Zealanders.

"It's a pretty good indication of general New Zealand attitudes," said Professor Gendall, head of the research team.

Results were weighted to give a better representation of New Zealand demographics, he said.

Religious extremists, but not racists, should be able to hold public meetings, say 55 per cent of the respondents.

But that doesn't mean most New Zealanders would back al Qaeda if it wanted to have meetings here, Professor Gendall said.

"The survey is part of the International Social Survey Programme, which asks the same questions in 40 countries," he said.

"In New Zealand, perceptions of religious extremists might be Destiny Church, pretty tame compared to religious fanatics in other countries."

Only 40 per cent believed the Government could be trusted to do what was right most of the time, a result Professor Gendall attributed to polarising legislation on issues such as prostitution and civil unions.

Most New Zealanders - 70 per cent - believed they had little influence on Government policy, but 87 per cent rated New Zealand democracy at five out of 10 or better.

"People are saying that our system is robust, fair and open. You couldn't say that in other countries, even America," Professor Gendall said.

"But people feel powerless on an individual level."

Professor Gendall said results comparing the countries in the international programme should be available by the end of June.