Canadians to Opposition Parties: Vote For the Budget

Toronto, ON - As Canadians face the prospect of another showdown in parliament over the budget - deemed a matter of confidence that could cause the government to fall and have the Governor General ask a coalition to form the government or call an election- a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Canwest News Service and Global Television has revealed that most Canadians are looking to avoid a situation that will put the Governor General in this position.

Six in ten (57%) Canadians think that the opposition parties should vote `for the Harper budget' to avoid defeating the government, while three in ten (30%) believe the opposition parties should vote `against the Harper budget'. One in ten (13%) Canadians are unsure of what the opposition parties should do in this vote.

• Albertans (66%) are most likely to think the opposition parties should support the budget, followed by those living in Saskatchewan and Manitoba (65%), Ontario (61%), British Columbia (59%), Quebec (46%) and Atlantic Canada (45%).
• In no region is there a majority who supports bringing down the government over the budget. However, Quebecers (44%) are the most inclined to think the opposition parties should vote against the budget, followed by residents of Atlantic Canada (41%), Ontario (26%), British Columbia (25%), Alberta (22%) and Saskatchewan and Manitoba (20%).

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted January 20 to 22, 2009, for Canwest News Service and Global Television. For the survey, a representative randomly selected sample of 1,000 adult Canadians was interviewed by telephone. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 1773.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, of what they would have been had the entire adult population of Canada been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were weighted to ensure that the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to Census data.

For more information on this news release, please contact:
Dr. Darrell Bricker
President & CEO
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
416-509-8460
[email protected]

About Ipsos Reid
Ipsos Reid is Canada's market intelligence leader, the country's leading provider of public opinion research, and research partner for loyalty and forecasting and modelling insights. With operations in eight cities, Ipsos Reid employs more than 600 research professionals and support staff in Canada. The company has the biggest network of telephone call centres in the country, as well as the largest pre-recruited household and online panels. Ipsos Reid's marketing research and public affairs practices offer the premier suite of research vehicles in Canada, all of which provide clients with actionable and relevant information. Staffed with seasoned research consultants with extensive industry-specific backgrounds, Ipsos Reid offers syndicated information or custom solutions across key sectors of the Canadian economy, including consumer packaged goods, financial services, automotive, retail, and technology & telecommunications. Ipsos Reid is an Ipsos company, a leading global survey-based market research group.

To learn more, please visit www.ipsos.ca.

About Ipsos
Ipsos is a leading global survey-based market research company, owned and managed by research professionals. Ipsos helps interpret, simulate, and anticipate the needs and responses of consumers, customers, and citizens around the world.

Member companies assess market potential and interpret market trends. They develop and build brands. They help clients build long-term relationships with their customers. They test advertising and study audience responses to various media. They measure public opinion around the globe.

Ipsos member companies offer expertise in advertising, customer loyalty, marketing, media, and public affairs research, as well as forecasting, modeling, and consulting. Ipsos has a full line of custom, syndicated, omnibus, panel, and online research products and services, guided by industry experts and bolstered by advanced analytics and methodologies. The company was founded in 1975 and has been publicly traded since 1999.

In 2007, Ipsos generated global revenues of e927.2 million ($1.27 billion U.S.).

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