Six in Ten (61%) Canadians Approve Creation of Cloned Human Embryos for Collecting Stem Cells

Toronto, ONTARIO (Tuesday, October 22, 2002) - According to a new Ipsos-Reid/CTV/Globe and Mail poll released today, six in ten (61%) Canadians approve of the creation of cloned human embryos for the sole purpose of collecting stem cells to be used in research. Some researchers believe that, compared to other sources of stem cells, those coming from cloned human embryos hold the most promise for the treatment of many diseases. Four in ten (37%) disapprove of this activity.

Further, three-quarters (76%) of Canadians approve of the use of unused extra human embryos -- originally created for the purpose of in-vitro fertilization -- for stem cell research into improved treatment of diseases, given that consent is obtained from the original couple involved. Half (49%) of Canadians strongly approve of this activity, while 27% somewhat approve. One-fifth (22%) disapprove of this use of extra embryos.

These are the findings of an Ipsos-Reid/CTV/Globe and Mail poll conducted between October 8th and October 10th, 2002. The poll is based on a randomly selected sample of 1,000 adult Ontarians. 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 Canadian population been polled. The margin of error will be larger within regions and for other sub-groupings of the survey population. These data were statistically weighted to ensure the sample's regional and age/sex composition reflects that of the actual Canadian population according to the 1996 Census data.

Six in ten (61%) Canadians approve the creation of cloned human embryos for the sole purpose of collecting stem cells to be used in research. Four in ten (37%) disapprove of this activity.

• Regionally, residents of Atlantic Canada (68%) are more likely than their neighbours in Quebec (54%) to approve of the creation of cloned human embryos solely for the purpose of collecting stem cells for research.
• Younger (72%) Canadians are more likely than either their middle aged (58%) or older (51%) counterparts to approve of this activity.
• Men (66% versus 56% of women) are more likely to say they approve.
• Canadians in upper income households (71%) are more likely than either those in middle (61%) or lower (50%) income households to indicate approval.
• Those with some university or other post-secondary education (65%), a university degree (63%) or a high school diploma (59%) are more likely to express approval than are Canadians who did not complete high school (48%).

Three-quarters (76%) of Canadians also approve the use of unused extra human embryos -- originally created for the purpose of in-vitro fertilization but left unused by a couple -- for stem cell research, as long as consent is obtained from the original couple involved. Half (49%) of Canadians strongly approve of this activity, while 27% somewhat approve. One-fifth (22%) disapprove of this use of spare embryos.

• Younger (82%) Canadians are more likely than middle aged (73%) or older (71%) Canadians to approve of this use of spare or extra embryos.
• Those in upper (80%) and middle (77%) income households are more likely than their counterparts in lower income households (69%) to express approval.
• Canadians with some university or other post-secondary education (79%), as well as those with a university degree (77%) or a high school diploma (77%) are more likely than those who did not finish high school (61%) to say they approve of this activity.
• There is no statistical difference in the views across region or gender groups.

To view the release and tables, please open the attached PDF files.

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For more information on this news release, please contact:

Darrell Bricker
President and COO
Ipsos-Reid Public Affairs
(416) 324-2900