Michael Ignatieff's tax talk taking toll, poll finds
Updated Thu. Apr. 23 2009 1:18 PM ET
The Canadian Press
OTTAWA -- A new poll suggests Michael Ignatieff's musings about potential tax increases could hurt his efforts to build Liberal support across the country -- except in Quebec.The Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey indicates that 30 per cent of respondents nationwide are less likely to vote Liberal in the next election as a result of the party leader's reflections on taxes last week; only 16 per cent are more likely to support the Grits.The damage was most pronounced in Atlantic Canada and British Columbia, where 44 per cent and 40 per cent respectively were less likely to vote Liberal.
However, the poll suggests Ignatieff's tax talk went down well in Quebec, where 29 per cent of respondents were more likely to vote Liberal and only 10 per cent less likely.Last week, Ignatieff initially appeared to suggest that tax hikes are inevitable to eliminate massive budget deficits currently being racked up by the Conservative government in a bid to stimulate the sputtering economy.He later clarified that a Liberal government would increase taxes only as a last resort and only once the economy has fully recovered.
The telephone survey of just over 1,000 Canadians was conducted April 16-19 and is considered accurate within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.The margin of error is larger for provincial findings.
3 comments:
However, all the polls have all said, over and over now, that the tories have completely lost the support of Canadians, and would likely not even form a minority government.
To paraphrase you, "Canadians have spoken"
Indeed.
And it's gonna get worse for Harper...
Polls show them even and much of their support seems to come from pork barrel Quebeckers.
I have to agree with your comments about Harper But then Iggy is taking a negative media hit also. Stephen, who I didn't vote for but I give support because he is the leader, needs to make a hard right turn which iws difficult thanks to our US cousins.
I think you're glossing over reality a bit here.
I don't think it's simply -because- of our US cousins, though you can't deny the influence. I think the conservative party would seal it's fate quicker than you can say liberal majority if they swung hard right, as it's clear the majority of Canadians, are from right-center, to left.
If you are astute enough, obviously Harper clearly knows this only too well, and if you look at the history of that party as it morphed from the reform to embrace the conservatives and eventually take power, they have had to move away from the hard right to increase their support, it's all quite rudimentary. Just watch, the minute Harper takes a swing towards the hard right, there goes his support. Each, and everytime. It makes no difference how much his hard right supporters cheer him on those, their support is always going to stay hard right regardless. It's well known Harper's challenge of 'walking the line', keeping his hard right christian nutbars content, while trying to paint themselves as moderates to increase their support.
The fact is, if Canadians were such 'conservatives' and ready to embrace hard right politics, Harper wouldn't bother. End of story.
No it isn't just the quebec pork barrellers as you call them, all the polls, have consistently now for some time shown a deep erosion of support in Ontario, and now the numbers are showing as much as a 10% lead for the liberals.
Iggy will continue to get negative press, but at this point, it starting to appear, that the next election, will be his to lose.
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