Blue Ensign
The flag was a favourite of Australia's first Prime Minister, Sir Edmund Barton, who asked that a variant be considered for approval along with the competition-winning Blue Ensign. The Colonial Office rejected the Federation Flag, issuing Barton a mild rebuke. The Australian government received approval to fly the Blue Ensign in 1903, but the Australian Federation Flag was still being flown by Australian citizens as late as the 1920s.