Laser Talk: The Most Recent Polling Data A September 2020 poll conducted in the 905 region of Ontario by Léger and Clean Prosperity showed that Canadians favour pricing carbon when they understand how much money is returned to them. The facts are 80 percent of Canadians come out ahead, farm diesel is exempt and people living in rural areas get a 10 percent top-up. A Dec. 9 poll found that two-thirds of Canadians would like to see their country as either “world-leading” or “among the most ambitious” in the shift to clean energy and clean technology, according to the latest in a series of surveys conducted by Clean Energy Canada and Abacus Data.
A January 2021 poll conducted by Léger and Clean Prosperity found that Conservatives should reconsider their opposition to carbon pricing. The poll conducted in the 71 Conservative-held ridings in Alberta, BC, Manitoba, and Saskatchewan dispels the commonly-held notion that Conservatives would lose significant support among their base if they adopted carbon pricing. Instead, the poll found that two-thirds of Conservative voters would support Erin O’Toole if he proposed a carbon pricing policy to help the party win government. Further, the poll found that a carbon pricing policy that cuts income taxes could be a net vote winner for the Conservative Party.
Most recently was #ThePeoplesClimateVote released on January 27, 2021, by Oxford University and the UNDP. It was the largest survey ever on climate change. It included 1.2 million people over 14 years of age in 50 countries and 17 languages. Key findings were that 64% believe we are in a climate emergency, and 10% think world leaders are doing enough. While younger people showed the greatest concern, with 69% of those aged 14-18 saying there is a climate emergency, 58% of over 60 agreed, suggesting there is not a huge generational divide. Specifically for Canada, 69% agreed that companies should pay for pollution.
