Despite Government's Assurances of Balanced Budget, Majority (59%) Prefers a Budget that Makes Investments in Jobs, Economy and Social Programs Even if It Runs a Deficit, Rather Than a Balanced Budget (41%)

Toronto, ON - Despite Finance Minister Joe Oliver's insistence that the federal budget to be delivered on Tuesday will be balanced, a new Ipsos poll conducted on behalf of Global News has revealed that a majority (59%) prefers a budget that invests in jobs, the economy and social programs even if it runs a deficit, while four in ten (41%) prefer a budget that is balanced.

One in three (33%) believe that `right now Canada needs to create jobs and grow the economy' and that the federal budget should `make investments in economic growth even if that means increasing Canada's debt'. Further, one quarter (26%) thinks that `right now Canada needs stronger social programs like health and education' and so the budget should `make investments in social programs even if that means increasing Canada's debt'. In short, six in ten (59%) would prefer to see a budget that makes investments, even if the budget isn't balanced.

In contrast, four in ten (41%) of Canadians think that `Canada must spend within its means' and that the budget should `be prudent and not increase Canada's debt'.

Thinking about the economy today and the issues that are currently facing Canada, Canadians were asked which party and leader they think would put forward the best budget not only for Canada overall, but for the middle class, the average taxpayer and their own family. The results reveal that Stephen Harper holds the hammer in every category, besting Trudeau and Mulcair, once again reinforcing that the Harper Conservatives appear to have the edge on fiscal matters:

• Best budget for Canada overall: Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives (45%), Justin Trudeau and the Liberals (33%), Thomas Mulcair and the NDP (22%).
• Best budget for the middle class: Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives (36%), Justin Trudeau and the Liberals (34%), Thomas Mulcair and the NDP (29%).
• Best budget for the average taxpayer: Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives (37%), Justin Trudeau and the Liberals (33%), Thomas Mulcair and the NDP (30%).
• Best budget for me and my family: Prime Minister Stephen Harper and the Conservatives (38%), Justin Trudeau and the Liberals (33%), Thomas Mulcair and the NDP (29%).

The Liberal Party has put a lot of emphasis since Mr. Trudeau became their leader on helping what they have characterized as a struggling Canadian middle class. As the poll results show, the Liberals trail the Conservatives as champions of the middle class, followed closely by the New Democrats.

Even in a balanced budget - which is widely expected on Tuesday - governments can find room for new investments without taking on more debt. If there's room for investment in the 2015 Budget, four in ten (36%) Canadians would like the new federal dollars spent on encouraging economic growth and job creation. Three in ten (29%) would like to see the money go towards improving social programs like healthcare. Two in ten (22%) would prefer to see the money used in the form of lower taxes, while one in ten (12%) would like any new money allocated towards reducing the national debt load of Canada.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos poll conducted between April 15th and 17th, 2015 on behalf of Global News. For this survey, a sample of 1,005 adults from Ipsos' Canadian online panel was interviewed online. Weighting was then employed to balance demographics to ensure that the sample's composition reflects that of the adult population according to Census data and to provide results intended to approximate the sample universe. The precision of Ipsos online polls is measured using a credibility interval. In this case, the poll is accurate to within +/ - 3.5 percentage points, 19 times out of 20, had all Canadian adults 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
(416) 324-2001
[email protected]

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