Abacus Data: Canadians expect bold action to deal with the economic and social impact of the pandemic | Unpublished
Hello!

Unpublished Opinions

Abacus Data's picture
Ottawa, Ontario
About the author

Having conducted research for some of North America’s leading corporations and advocacy groups, we deliver global research capacities with the attention to detail and focus of a boutique firm. We have the capacity to conduct surveys, focus groups (on- and offline), membership surveys, elite and stakeholder consultations, and build online research communities. Our team combines the experience of our Chairman Bruce Anderson, one of Canada’s leading research executives for two decades, with the energy, creativity and research expertise of CEO David Coletto, PhD. We all value integrity, hard work, and creativity believing good research insights come from an intense focus on our clients, rigourous methods, and occasionally challenging convention. Whether it is a public opinion study on a challenging issue or consumer research on likelihood to recommend, our team has the experience and energy to deliver deep insights on-time, on-budget, and with creative perspective. - See more at: http://abacusdata.ca/about/#sthash.euNpekw1.dpuf

Like it

Abacus Data: Canadians expect bold action to deal with the economic and social impact of the pandemic

September 16, 2020

The survey asked respondents whether the COVID-19 pandemic has made several aspects of life and particular groups in society better or worse off.

Almost all Canadians (82%) believe that the wealth of Canada’s wealthiest people is better or has not been impacted by the pandemic. In fact, 31% think Canada’s richest people are better off because of the pandemic. Only 18% think they are worse off.

65% of Canadians believe “the pandemic has highlighted problems with how the economy and social policies are run in Canada and major changes are needed to ensure that these problems do not happen again if there is another crisis like the COVID-19 pandemic.” Only 19% think the “way the Canadian economy and social policies worked before the pandemic was good and does not need major change"

The desire for major changes is consistent across Canada, across age groups and gender and even across the political spectrum. 62% of Liberal voters, 69% of Conservative voters, and 72% of NDP voters want to see a major change.

Given this, half of Canadians want to see the federal government announce bold new ideas for how to fundamentally improve people’s lives and deal with climate change. 36% want the federal government to make some changes, but nothing that fundamentally changes how things are done. 10% want the government to keep the direction it set before the pandemic and change very little.