Canadians Not Sold
On TransMountain Purchase
Plurality supports government's stance
on NAFTA, though
Toronto, June 1st – In
a random sampling of public opinion taken by The Forum Poll™ among 969 Canadian
voters, half (TOP2: 52%) say that they disapprove of the government's purchase
of the Transmountain pipeline, with 4 in 10 saying they disapprove strongly.
One quarter (BTM2:
25%) say that they approve, with 1 in 10 saying they approve strongly.
Respondents most
likely to say they disapprove of the pipeline purchase include those aged 34
and younger (57%), females (53%), those aged 55-64 (58%), earning
$40,000-$60,000 (69%), living in BC (61%), and supporting the Green Party
(75%).
Respondents most
likely to approve of the pipeline purchase include those aged 65+ (32%),
earning $80-$100,000 (31%) or the most wealthy (34%), living in Alberta (34%),
and supporting the Liberals (40%).
Plurality approves of NAFTA handling so
far
4 in 10 (44%) say that they approve of the
Federal Government's handling of the NAFTA negotiations so far, while a quarter
(27%) say they disapprove, and almost a third (29%) say they do not know.
Respondents most likely to say they approve
include those aged 55-64 (54%), males (50%), the most wealthy (58%), living in
Quebec (46%) or BC (48%), and supporting the Liberals (72%).
Respondents most likely to say they
disapprove include those aged 34 and younger (36%), earning $20,000-$40,000
(34%), living in the Atlantic provinces (35%), the prairies (33%), or Alberta
(36%), and supporting the Conservatives (46%).
Two-thirds say American tariffs will
have an effect on the Canadian economy
Two-thirds (BTM2 67%) say that American
tariffs on steel and aluminum will have a considerable effect on the Canadian
economy with one-sixth (TOP2: 16%) saying it won't have much of an effect at
all.
Respondents most likely to say the tariffs
will have a considerable effect include those aged 35-44 (70%), 55-64 (71%), or
65+ (68%), males (69%), earning $60,000-$80,000 (76%), living in Alberta (78%),
and supporting the Conservatives (72%).
Respondents most likely to say the tariffs
won't have much of an effect include those aged 34 and younger (21%) or 55-64
(20%) and supporting the Green Party (22%).
“The decision to purchase the Transmountain
pipeline is not a popular one," said Dr. Lorne Bozinoff,
President of Forum Research. “With half of Canadians opposed to the move, it
could be risky. It isn't all bad for the government right now, though, as the
plularity of Canadians say that they approve of its handling of the contentious
NAFTA negotiations. Two-thirds are concerned with American tariffs, though, so
the situation is evolving rapidly; what effect the Canadian response will have
on public opinion, remains to be seen."
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.
