83% of Canadians Support a “Buy Canadian” Mandate for Government Advertising Spending
More than eight in 10 (83%) Canadians support (42% strongly /41% somewhat) the federal government bringing in a “Buy Canadian” rule that requires most of its advertising spending to go to Canadian-owned media companies and platforms, according to a new Ipsos study conducted for the Toronto Star. Canada's federal government does not currently have a buy Canadian rule for its advertising. Instead, the federal government, its agencies and Crown corporations spend more than an estimated $100 million a year on advertising with U.S.-owned tech companies like Facebook, Instagram, Google, X, and YouTube.
Support for this concept is approaching a national consensus, with strong support found coast to coast and across generations: support is approaching nine in 10 in Atlantic Canada (89%) and Alberta (88%), with at least eight in 10 supporting this policy in British Columbia (85%), Ontario (82%), Quebec (80%) and Saskatchewan and Manitoba (79%). Across the generations, Boomers (90%) exhibit the strongest support, followed by Gen X (80%), Millennials (80%) and Gen Z (79%).
Some provincial governments, like Ontario, have a “Buy Canadian” rule that says that at least 25% of government advertising must be with Canadian media. Reflecting on this, nine in 10 (88%) Canadians support (51% strongly/37% somewhat) this rule, rising to 90% support in Ontario itself.
Such strong support for a “Buy Canadian” mandate is being driven by geopolitical factors, most notably Canada’s dispute with the United States and President Donald Trump. Considering this, most (85%) Canadians agree (61% strongly/24% somewhat) that given the current tensions with the United States and the actions of the Trump administration, it is more important than ever for Canada to have a strong and independent news media that tells Canada’s story to Canadians. Once again, support is strong across the generations and regions of Canada, particularly among Boomers (93%) and in British Columbia (90%), Saskatchewan and Manitoba (90%) and Ontario (88%).
Darrell Bricker, Global CEO of Ipsos Public Affairs, who conducted the study for The Toronto Star, said: “You don’t often see this level of consensus in Canadian public opinion. But when it comes to defending our sovereignty, Canadians want their government to back Canadian-owned media with its advertising dollars.”
Jordan Bitove, Publisher of the Toronto Star and Owner of Torstar Corporation, said: “The federal government shouldn't be sending the majority of its advertising dollars to Silicon Valley. The new Buy Canadian policy is an opportunity for the federal government to listen to the public and work with Canadian-owned and operated media organizations to reach Canadians.”
These are the findings of an Ipsos survey conducted on behalf of the Toronto Star from October 10th to 14th, 2025. A total of n = 1002 Canadians aged 18+ participated in the survey which was fielded via the Ipsos I-Say panel. Quotas and weighting were used to ensure the sample's composition reflects that of the Canadian population according to census parameters. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within ± 3.8 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadians aged 18+ been polled. The credibility interval will be wider among subsets of the population. All sample surveys and polls may be subject to other sources of error, including, but not limited to, coverage error, and measurement error.
For more information on this news release, please contact:
Darrell Bricker, PhD
CEO, Ipsos Global Public Affairs
+1 416 324 2001
[email protected]
Melanie Karalis
Director of Public Relations and Brand Engagement, Torstar Corporation
+1 548 588 1279
[email protected]
Ipsos is one of the largest market research and polling companies globally, operating in 90 markets and employing nearly 20,000 people.
Our passionately curious research professionals, analysts and scientists have built unique multi-specialist capabilities that provide true understanding and powerful insights into the actions, opinions and motivations of citizens, consumers, patients, customers or employees. Our 75 business solutions are based on primary data from our surveys, social media monitoring, and qualitative or observational techniques.
“Game Changers” – our tagline – summarizes our ambition to help our 5,000 clients navigate with confidence our rapidly changing world.
Founded in France in 1975, Ipsos has been listed on the Euronext Paris since July 1, 1999. The company is part of the SBF 120, Mid-60 indices, STOXX Europe 600 and is eligible for the Deferred Settlement Service (SRD).
