Majority wants Canada to do more
for refugees
Conservatives, Albertans
opposed
TORONTO September 10th, 2015 - In a random sampling of public opinion taken by the Forum
Poll™ among 1308 Canadian voters, the majority say Canada can do more for
Syrian refugees than settling the 10,000 who have been promised refuge over the
next two years (52%). More than one third disagree Canada should do more to
help (38%) and one tenth don’t have an opinion (10%). Approval of more help for
refugees is common to mid income groups ($40K to $100K - 58%), in Atlantic
Canada (60%), among Liberals (60%) and, especially, New Democrats (70%) and
among the best educated (post grad - 67%). Opposition to taking in more than
the 10,000 refugees promised is characteristic of males (42%), in Quebec (44%)
and Alberta (50%), among Conservatives (67%) and among those with some college
or university (44%).
On average, Canadians think
about 28,000 refugees can be settled
On average, Canadians think about 28,000 refugees
ideally can be settled in Canada. The largest single group, 3-in-10, opts for
the 10,000 already promised (30%), while 4-in-10 think more than this is
possible (41%). One twentieth think over 100,000 refugees should be settled in
Canada. Average numbers are higher among younger voters and in BC.
Bombing, humanitarian aid and
negotiations all mentioned as solutions to crisis
The leading suggestions for resolving the
refugee crisis are to continue bombing ISIS targets (19%), followed by sending
humanitarian aid to refugee camps and working towards a negotiated settlement
to the conflict (16% each). Other suggestions are airlifting refugees out now
(12%), increasing visa issuing staff (11%) and relaxing the rules regarding
refugees (7%). Continuing to bomb ISIS targets is a strongly held Conservative
position (41%), while Liberals are strongly in favour of airlifts (19%).
Conservatives seen to have
best plan for resolving crisis
One quarter of voters say the Conservatives have
the best plan for dealing with the refugee crisis (24%) while the NDP (19%) and
the Liberals (18%) are not far behind. One sixth say none of the parties has a
solution (16%) while one quarter doesn’t share an opinion (23%). Conservatives
are most convinced their party’s approach is best (69%) compared to Liberals
(48%) or New Democrats (43%), both of who are more likely to say either that no
party has a solution or that they don’t know.
“It’s unfortunate that a critical humanitarian
issue like the Syrian refugee crisis has become a partisan conflict, and that
the polarizing effect of party allegiances is colouring the genuine warmth and
generosity of Canadians to those in peril," said Forum Research President, Dr. Lorne Bozinoff.
Lorne Bozinoff, Ph.D. is
the president and founder of Forum Research. He can be reached at lbozinoff@forumresearch.com
or at (416) 960-9603.
