Event Summary:
2005 Portraits of Canada*
Presented by Rebecca Low
CUC Director of Research and Regional Operations outside of Quebec
03 November, 2005
Summary by: Loreli Buenaventura, CUC
For the third consecutive year, the Canadian Unity Council (CUC) partnered with the CIIA to present the latest findings of its 2005 Portraits of Canada survey to an audience of Consuls and Ambassadors based in Toronto. This luncheon briefing at the offices of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg provided a window to the pulse of the nation and the issues that touch Canadians from coast-to-coast. In attendance were representatives from Consulates in Toronto including those of Italy, Bulgaria, the United States, Trinidad & Tobago, France, Indonesia, China, Mexico, Korea, Spain, India, Germany, and Japan
Rebecca Low, Director, CUC and Vice-President CIIA Toronto Branch presented recent findings gleaned from a national sampling of 3,201 Canadians by the CUC’s Centre for Research and Information on Canada (CRIC). She noted how Canadians from all geographic regions and socioeconomic strata ranked maintaining a balanced federal budget among their top priorities (73%), with the environment (78%) and increased health spending (74%) rounding the top three policy choices from a basis of 12 options. Dr. Donna Dasko, CUC Governor and Vice-President, Environics Research Group also drew attention to how Canadians view closer relations with the United States as the lowest priority – symbolic of an emerging trend in recent years.
The following is a summary of other results captured by the 8th annual Portraits of Canada tracking poll:
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A majority of Canadians (66%) are of the view that creating tighter rules with regard to ethics for governments and parliaments should be a high priority for the federal government.
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More than eight out of ten Canadians (82%) judge the integrity of their leaders harshly, taking the view that most political decision-makers do not tell the truth or keep their promises.
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53% of Canadians agree that political parties should be required to nominate a specific percentage of women candidates for election campaigns.
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Significant majorities of Canadians feel that medicare (85%), two official languages (73%), peacekeeping (69%), and the CBC (60%) are essential characteristics of the country, and that their disappearance would fundamentally alter Canada’s nature.
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A majority of Canadians (54%) would rather safeguard than sacrifice their civil liberties in the fight against terrorism, even if that means accepting a lower level of public security. However, 42% think it will be necessary to give up civil liberties to curb terrorism.
The above findings ignited a lively discussion among the participants and the sharing of the politics and attitudes in countries represented by the consulates in attendance. The discussions underscored the immense value of CRIC’s research with regard to understanding Canada’s development and its evolving identity. The session ended with CIIA and CUC’s promise to continue the tradition of keeping consulates informed of the issues affecting Canadians.
*The full poll, including graphics, methodology and additional breakdowns, is available on the CRIC website, www.cric.ca.
Event Photo Gallery:
Pollster Donna Dasko addresses the special event with Consuls General
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Donna Dasko and Rebecca Low confer with Milos Barutciski of Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP who generously hosted the event
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Rebecca Low, Director of the CRIC, speaks about the research results that her organization’s extensive polling revealed about Canadian attitudes on critical issues
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Keith Martin, President of the CIIA (Toronto) discusses an issue with Japan’s Consul General Hisao Yamaguchi
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Members of the Diplomatic Community in attendance at the joint CRIC and CIIA (Toronto) event
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