Support for assisted suicide
increases across four years
Opposition down sharply
TORONTO August 25th, 2015 - In a random sampling
of public opinion taken by the Forum Poll™ among 1440 Canadian voters, more
than three quarters, a new high in our four years of tracking, now support
physician-assisted suicide for the terminally ill (77%), up from just less than
three quarters in June last year (74%) and well up from October 2013 (65%), or
indeed, the first time we asked, in December 2011 (67%). Opposition has
declined from more than 1-in-6 last year (16%), to about a tenth now (12%).
Then as now, about one tenth don’t venture an opinion (11%).
Approval is common to the youngest (81%) and boomers (55 to
64 - 81%) but not to the oldest (65+ - 69%), among the wealthy ($80K to $100K -
80%), in Quebec (83%), but not in Alberta so much (69%), among New Democrats
(84%), but not so much among Conservatives (67%) and among Francophones (85%).
“There has been a
great deal of focus on this issue since the Supreme Court struck down Canada’s
laws against assisted dying in Carter vs Canada. The government has been
reluctant to fill the vacuum, but Canadians have spoken out loudly and clearly.
They want to control the means and the timing of their own passing," said Forum Research President,
Dr. Lorne Bozinoff.
Lorne Bozinoff, Ph.D. is
the president and founder of Forum Research. He can be reached at lbozinoff@forumresearch.com
or at (416) 960-9603.
