Support for Airstrike Mission Against ISIS
Rises to 76% (up 12 points since start of mission);
Majority (83%) Believes it's a Combat Mission

Toronto, ON - Support for Canadian Fighter Jet participation in the current allied coalition-led airstrike mission against ISIS targets in Iraq is on the rise, according to a new Ipsos Reid poll conducted on behalf of Global News.

Three quarters (76%) of Canadians `agree' (42% strongly/34% somewhat) that they `support the use of Canadian Forces Fighter Jets in the international coalition's airstrikes against ISIS targets in Iraq'. Compared to an Ipsos poll conducted prior to the announcement of Canada's involvement at the end of September, support is up 12 points. Conversely, one quarter (24%) of Canadians `disagrees' (8% strongly/16% somewhat) that they support the current mission, down 12 points. It's likely that Canadians have upped their level of support for action against ISIS given the much-publicized horror of the hostage killings by ISIS representatives.

Despite the repeated insistence by the Government of Canada that the current mission is not a combat mission, Canadian soldiers have been forced to return fire on a number of occasions when they've been under attack by ISIS militants. Based on what they've seen, read or heard about the current Canadian mission in Iraq against ISIS targets, most (83%) agree (34% strongly/49% somewhat) that they would `consider it to be a combat mission', while just two in ten (17%) disagree (3% strongly/13% somewhat) that they would characterize Canada's involvement in this manner.

That support for the mission has increased is likely attributed, at least in part, to the fact that more Canadians believe the war against ISIS can be won. Eight in ten (78%) `agree' (34% strongly/45% somewhat) that `the coalition of allies can win the war against ISIS', while just two in ten (22%) `disagree' (6% strongly/16% somewhat) that this is a war that can be won. The proportion of Canadians who agree that the war can be won is up 7 points since December, while the converse is down 7 points.

Moreover, most Canadians are resolved to see this conflict through to victory. Three quarters (73%) `agree' (36% strongly/37% somewhat) that `we should do everything possible to prevent ISIS from getting its own state, even if it means putting Canadian soldiers on the ground in Iraq', a sentiment which is unchanged since December. Three in ten (27%) disagree (8% strongly/19% somewhat) with this position.

When asked specifically about whether they would support a ground war, seven in ten (69%) `agree' (32% strongly/37% somewhat) that they `support the use of Canadian Forces on the ground in a combat mission against ISIS in Iraq', while three in ten (31%) Canadians `disagree (10% strongly/22% somewhat), opposing the deployment of Canadian troops to a ground war against ISIS.

Support for Current Mission Strong Across Canada, Including Quebec...

Support for the current mission is strong in every region across Canada, including Quebec - where support for Canadian military involvement in battle is typically luke-warm at best. Nationally support is 76%, but some Canadians are more supportive than others:

• Nine in ten (88%) residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba support the current airstrike mission, followed by those living in Alberta (81%), Atlantic Canada (79%), Ontario (79%), BC (76%) and Quebec (66%).
• Men (82%) are more supportive of the current mission than women (71%).
• Those over the age of 55 are most supportive (85%), followed by those aged 35 to 54 (75%) and 18 to 34 (67%).

Support for Ground Combat Mission Against ISIS Also Has Majority Support Across Canada ...

Support for the use of Canadian Forces on the ground in a combat mission against ISIS is also high at 69%, and receives majority support among every key demographic group of Canadians studied:

• Residents of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (76%) and Atlantic Canada (76%) are most supportive, followed by those living in Alberta (71%), Ontario (69%), British Columbia (65%) and Quebec (64%).
• Men (70%) and women (67%) show similar overall levels of support, although men are much more likely to strongly agree than women (39% of men vs. 26% of women).
• Those aged 35 to 54 (73%) and older (71%) Canadians are most supportive, while younger Canadians (60%) are less supportive of a ground mission.

These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted between February 9 to 12, 2015 on behalf of Global News. For this survey, a sample of 1,005Canadians 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 Reid
Global Public Affairs
(416) 324-2001
[email protected]

John Wright
Senior Vice President
Ipsos Reid
Public Affairs
(416) 324-2002
[email protected]

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