BC Public On The Softwood Lumber Dispute
Majority Think Federal (81%) and Provincial (58%) Governments Doing a Poor Job Resolving Dispute
Two-Thirds (63%) Pessimistic that Dispute Will Be Resolved to Satisfaction of BC Forest Industry
Vancouver, BC - A new Ipsos-Reid survey finds that British Columbians give both the federal and provincial governments a failing grade when it comes to their performance in trying to resolve the softwood lumber dispute with the Americans. Eight-in-ten (81%) BC residents say the federal government is doing a "poor job" in trying to resolve the dispute. The provincial government fairs somewhat better, with six-in-ten (58%) residents rating its performance as "poor". Looking forward, British Columbians are more "pessimistic" (63%) than "optimistic" (35%) that the softwood lumber dispute will be resolved to the satisfaction of the BC forest industry. "These poll results are a clear indication of the frustration British Columbians are feeling with the snail-like progress in trying to resolve the softwood lumber dispute," observes Daniel Savas, Senior Vice-President in Ipsos-Reid's Vancouver office. "The BC public is close to giving up hope of seeing a positive result for the BC forest industry from the negotiation, and, as a result, they're quite critical of the provincial and federal governments."
These are the some of the findings from an Ipsos-Reid Special Report on BC's Forest Industry conducted between February 3rd and 9th, 2003 among a representative cross-section of 800 British Columbian adults. These data are statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional, age and sex composition reflects that of the actual BC population according to 2001 Census data. With a provincial sample of 800, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the overall results are within 1773.5 percentage points of what they would have been had the entire adult BC population been polled. The margin of error will be larger for population sub-groups.
Majority Think Federal (81%) and Provincial (58%) Governments Doing a Poor Job Resolving Dispute
Eight-in-ten (81%) British Columbians think the federal government is doing a "poor job" in trying to resolve the softwood lumber trade dispute with the Americans. Nearly one-half (46%) think the federal government is doing a "very poor job", while 35 percent think the federal government is doing a "somewhat poor job". Only two-in-ten (18%) residents think the federal government is doing a "good job" (2% "very good job", 16% "somewhat good job") in resolving the dispute.
A majority (58%) of BC residents also think their provincial government is doing a "poor job" in trying to resolve the dispute with the Americans. One-quarter (25%) think the BC government is doing a "very poor job", while 33 percent think the provincial government is doing a "somewhat poor job". Meanwhile, four -in-ten (40%) British Columbians think the provincial government is doing a "good job" (7% "very good job", 33% "somewhat good job") in resolving the dispute.
Two-Thirds (63%) Pessimistic that Dispute Will Be Resolved to Satisfaction of BC Forest Industry
British Columbians are not hopeful that the softwood lumber dispute will be resolved in a way that will satisfy BC's forest industry. Two-thirds (63%) say they are "pessimistic" about the dispute being resolved to the satisfaction of the BC forest industry. One-quarter (27%) are "very pessimistic" and another 36 percent are "somewhat pessimistic".
Roughly one-in-three (35%) BC residents are generally "optimistic" about the likelihood of the softwood lumber dispute being resolved to the satisfaction of the BC forest industry. One-in-ten (8%) residents are "very optimistic", while 27 percent are "somewhat optimistic".
These are the some of the findings from an Ipsos-Reid Special Report on BC's Forest Industry conducted between February 3rd and 9th, 2003 among a representative cross-section of 800 British Columbian adults. These data are statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional, age and sex composition reflects that of the actual BC population according to 2001 Census data. With a provincial sample of 800, one can say with 95 percent certainty that the overall results are within 1773.5 percentage points of what they would have been had the entire adult BC population been polled. The margin of error will be larger for population sub-groups.
Majority Think Federal (81%) and Provincial (58%) Governments Doing a Poor Job Resolving Dispute
Eight-in-ten (81%) British Columbians think the federal government is doing a "poor job" in trying to resolve the softwood lumber trade dispute with the Americans. Nearly one-half (46%) think the federal government is doing a "very poor job", while 35 percent think the federal government is doing a "somewhat poor job". Only two-in-ten (18%) residents think the federal government is doing a "good job" (2% "very good job", 16% "somewhat good job") in resolving the dispute.
A majority (58%) of BC residents also think their provincial government is doing a "poor job" in trying to resolve the dispute with the Americans. One-quarter (25%) think the BC government is doing a "very poor job", while 33 percent think the provincial government is doing a "somewhat poor job". Meanwhile, four -in-ten (40%) British Columbians think the provincial government is doing a "good job" (7% "very good job", 33% "somewhat good job") in resolving the dispute.
- Middle aged and older residents are more likely than younger residents to think the federal government is doing a "poor job" (84%, 35+ years vs. 73%, 18-34 years).
- The percentage of British Columbians thinking the provincial government is doing a "poor job" is consistent across regions and demographic groups.
Two-Thirds (63%) Pessimistic that Dispute Will Be Resolved to Satisfaction of BC Forest Industry
British Columbians are not hopeful that the softwood lumber dispute will be resolved in a way that will satisfy BC's forest industry. Two-thirds (63%) say they are "pessimistic" about the dispute being resolved to the satisfaction of the BC forest industry. One-quarter (27%) are "very pessimistic" and another 36 percent are "somewhat pessimistic".
Roughly one-in-three (35%) BC residents are generally "optimistic" about the likelihood of the softwood lumber dispute being resolved to the satisfaction of the BC forest industry. One-in-ten (8%) residents are "very optimistic", while 27 percent are "somewhat optimistic".
- For more information, please contact:
Daniel Savas
Senior Vice-President
604.257.3200
