Two thirds see UCCB as election ploy only
3-in-10 don’t need the money
TORONTO July 29th,
2015 - In
a random sampling of public opinion taken by the Forum Poll™ among 1397
Canadian voters, one fifth report having received a Universal Child Care
Benefit (UCCB) cheque during their distribution last week (21%). Those of
child-rearing age were most likely to have received the benefit, of course (35
to 44 - 59%) as were the wealthy ($80K to $100K - 29%) and Quebeckers (26%).
3-in-10 don’t need the benefit
Three-in-ten of those who receive the benefit say they don’t
need the money (30%), while the wide majority do (70%). It is among the
wealthiest, of course, that the need is least ($100K to $250K - 58%).
UCCB not effective at driving votes
Just one tenth of Canadian voters are more likely to vote
Conservative because of the UCCB (12%), while as many as 4-in-10 are less
likely to vote for the party because of this giveaway (40%). A similar
proportion say the UCCB will have no effect on their vote (41%). The majority
of Conservatives say the UCCB will have no effect on their vote (54%), but a
significant minority will be less likely to vote their party in response to the
benefit (11%). Very few Liberals or New Democrats say the UCCB will prompt them
to vote Conservative (5% and 4%, respectively). In each case, the child benefit
is seen to reinforce their vote for their own party (Liberals - 53%, New
Democrats - 54%). Those who received the UCCB are more likely to vote
Conservative as a result (17%) than are those who did not (11%).
Two thirds see UCCB as vote-buying election ploy
The wide majority of voters, two thirds, see the UCCB as an
election ploy to buy votes (63%) rather than a genuine attempt to help parents
with children (26%). While 6-in-10 Conservatives see it as a genuine attempt to
help parents (61%), almost a quarter see it as vote buying (23%). The
Liberals (75%) and, especially, the NDP (85%) are much more likely to see the
UCCB as an election giveaway. Those who received the UCCB are no less likely to
see it as an election ploy than those who did not.
"For a big effort,
and a huge spend, it looks like the Conservative Party isn’t getting as much
bang for their baby bucks as they counted on. Our polling has shown their
numbers up this week since the cheques were distributed, but few ascribe their
newfound enthusiasm for the Conservatives to what it appears voters think is
found money, conveniently arriving just before an election," 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.
