Almost half of all Canadians believe that the federal government needs to reduce spending, according to a new poll released by a taxpayer advocacy group.
A new Leger poll commissioned and released by the Canadian Taxpayer Federation on Monday has found that 45 per cent of Canadians think the government needs to spend less.
The poll informed the online panel of 1,519 adult Canadian respondents that the federal government has increased its spending by 26 per cent over the last five years before asking Canadians what should happen to the budget over the next four years.
A probability sample of the same size yields a margin of error no greater than 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.
Of the 45 per cent, 20 per cent called for the feds to “significantly” reduce spending, while the other quarter of Canadians said it should be reduced “somewhat.”
Nearly one-fifth, or 19 per cent of Canadians said the government should keep spending at its current rate, while 20 per cent called for increased spending.
When those who were unsure were excluded from the poll, 54 percent of Canadians wanted the feds to rein in spending, 23 percent were fine with the status quo, and 24 percent of decided Canadians wanted the government to spend more of their taxes.
“The poll results show most Canadians want the government to cut spending,” Franco Terrazzano, the CTF Federal Director said in a news release. “Canadians know they pay too much tax because the government wastes too much money.”
Prime Minister Mark Carney vowed to reduce spending so Canadians could invest more but a federal treasury board estimated Carney’s spending regime would cost Canadians $486.9 billion – an over 8 per cent increase from Trudeau’s spending the previous year.
“Prime Minister Mark Carney told Canadians he would rein in spending, but spending is ballooning again this year,” Terrazzano said. “The poll shows Canadians want Carney to reverse course and put an end to Ottawa’s runaway spending.”