The winding down of COVID-19 restrictions has begun in most of the country, and it’s being met with both confidence, and concern. A new study finds Canadians divided about the swiftness of public health measure reduction – including travel – and open to keep key restrictions in place for longer if necessary.
The study from the non-profit Angus Reid Institute, in partnership with the CBC, finds large numbers say that removal is happening too quickly (36%) with 73% saying they would support continuing masking requirements in public spaces while 64% support proof of vaccination at places like restaurants and theatres in their community.
Nationally, 38% believe the easing of restrictions is happening at the right pace, while only 22% believe it is too slow.
Notably, 70% of Canadians still believe that mandatory vaccinations should be required for international travel (including travel to the US), while 61% support mandatory COVID testing to travel internationally.
Additionally, when asked if people would continue to refrain from travelling abroad when domestic restrictions are lifted, 69% say no, while 31% said they would. Maritimers were most likely to say they would continue to stay home (47%).
These data help to underline an emerging trend as governments shift responsibility to Canadians to decide which health measures to continue to follow.
While official requirements may soon no longer be in place, many are ready to continue with the habits they have formed over the past two years. Two-thirds (64%) will continue sanitizing their hands in addition to washing, three-in-five will maintain the practice of social distancing, and fully half say – at least for the time being – they will avoid large crowds (53%) and continue to wear a mask in public (50%).
More key findings:
• Canadians are equally likely to say that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has done a good job (48%) and a bad job (48%) of handling the pandemic over the past two years. Past Liberal voters are near unanimous in their praise (88%), while two-thirds of past NDP voters agree that Trudeau has acquitted himself well (67%). Conversely, 84% of past Conservative voters, and three-in-five past Bloc voters (62%) say he has done a bad job.
• A majority also say that Canada’s chief public health officer Dr. Theresa Tam has done a good job (56%).
• Majorities in every region of the country say sanitizing will be part of their routine for the foreseeable future and at least half say so of keeping extra space between themselves and others.
• Awkward moments have been common in Canadian households over the past two years. More than half (56%) say that they have had a conflict with someone in their close friend circle or family about vaccination since the pandemic began, while 45% have had awkward moments after they turned down invitations to events because of restrictions.
Significant regional differences define the overall findings, as people in various parts of the country react to the situation where they live and gauge the changes through the lenses of their own realities.
As premiers and public health officials make announcements about the plan for spring, they do so with varied public opinion profiles. In Atlantic Canada (70%), BC (62%), and Quebec (57%), premiers are perceived as having handled the previous two years well. On the other end of the spectrum, residents in Manitoba (78%) and Alberta (71%) are overwhelmingly critical of what they have seen from their premiers since the pandemic began. In Ontario, 44% believe Premier Doug Ford has done a good job handling the pandemic while 52% do not.