And the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Don McKinnon, has warned that the referendum should not be used to entrench any undemocratic form of government in Pakistan.

BBC: Q&A: Pakistan referendum

The VIP guest list was headed by Commonwealth Secretary-General Don McKinnon, High Commissioners of eight Commonwealth countries, Chief Scout George Purdy, Scout Association vice-president Major General Michael Walsh and Welsh Scout Council president William Legge-Bourke.

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The finance minister, Bill Birch, the foreign minister, Don McKinnon, and the defence minister, Paul East, have been lined up by the plotters for the firing squad though Mrs Shipley respects Mr Birch's political acumen.

ECONOMIST: New Zealand