Public Perspectives: Understanding Canadians

Key Findings

• Canadians say they are optimistic, and seem to believe that “sunny days” are here. The largest increase in satisfaction over the past two years is with the way the government is running the country. Looking to the future, Canadians also feel that access to information and entertainment will be much better. Thank you Google and Netflix!
• General optimism aside, when we asked Canadians whether they thought owning a home, job security, having enough money to live well, and safety and retirement were better or worse for them than their parents generation, they were significantly more likely to say their parents had it better, and believe that their children will have it even worse. Add to this considerable angst over the overwhelming pace of change, concern about the environment and the clouds on the horizon start to look very grey.
• Fairness and equality (strong support for LGBQT equality and equal pay) are the cornerstones of our current values and the views that knit our society together. But with the belief in future prosperity in decline we are also seeing lower social cohesion, and Canadians are increasingly focusing on themselves.
• Elites beware! We think the economy is rigged for the rich, we don’t think that governments are listening to us, and we would much rather rely on our own intuition and judgement than on the views of experts

Implications

• As Canada enters the Fourth Industrial Revolution, two trends are converging to create the greatest concern for today’s governments: the Crisis of Elites and the Decline in Economic Optimism.
• Canadian governments are facing critical shifts: the automation of the labour market; an ageing population; shifting immigration patterns; and an economy that is growing slowly and transitioning in uncertain and somewhat unknown directions; as digital services, sharing apps and industry restructuring combine to reshape the economy.
• In the face of all this change, governments need to take bold steps today to get ahead of the curve. But being bold is risky and requires public trust and support, two things that governments increasingly lack.
• Canadians agree that something need to be done to address the environment and hold strong to the values of fairness and equality. Perhaps this one issue and these two values can form the foundation of government decisions and start the process of rebuilding an optimistic and trusting population.

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Public Perspectives, by Ipsos, offers expert commentary on both Canadian and global public opinion across a variety of topics. Register here to receive our free monthly email alert.