Majority (55%) Supports Opposition RESP Tax-Break Bill, Though Government Says It Would Risk Deficit
Ottawa, ON - A new Ipsos Reid poll conducted exclusively on behalf of CanWest News Service and Global Television finds that a majority of Canadians support (23% strongly/33% somewhat) the opposition-led RESP tax-break bill, even though the government has argued that this bill might cause them to run a deficit. Despite support for this bill, the Government, and subsequently the Liberal Party, have decided to support a budget bill which would effectively squash the RESP tax-break legislation.
Even though a majority supports this legislation, very few would like to see the government fall on this policy. In fact, just 14% would opt to have our federal politicians `fight an election over this issue', while most (81%) believe the parties should `find a way to work it out to avoid an election'. Five percent (5%) do not know.
Ontarians Split on Flaherty/McGuinty Spat...
In recent weeks, Prime Minister Harper and Jim Flaherty have been going head to head with Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty over the state of Ontario's economy. The federal Conservatives have argued that Ontario is becoming a poor place for companies to invest because Dalton McGuinty's provincial government hasn't worked hard enough to reduce corporate taxes.
Ontarians appear to be split on whether or not they agree with this statement. In fact, four in ten (41%) agree (21% strongly/20% somewhat) with this sentiment, while a similar proportion (44%) disagrees (21% strongly/23% somewhat) with the claims of the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance.
These are the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of CanWest News Service and Global Television from March 11 to March 13, 2008. For the survey, a representative randomly selected sample of 1001 adult Canadians was interviewed by telephone. With a sample of this size, the results are considered accurate to within 177 3.1 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
416-324-2001
[email protected]
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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.
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