A new survey by Angus Reid Institute, shows that a majority of Canadians are hopeful about the direction the country is headed in — a rebound from six months ago.
While 46 per cent say the country is on the right track, 40 per cent disagree with that statement.
These numbers almost swapped from six months ago when 47 per cent of Canadians said that the country is not on the right track and only 36 per cent said it is.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO 1130 NEWSRADIO VANCOUVER LIVE!“The data that we are seeing sitting much higher than it was in December of last year, it has really rebounded,” says Shachi Kurl, president of the Angus Reid Institute.
The bouncing-back effect was also evident in the question of ‘How proud are you to be Canadian?’ In the survey, that was conducted around June 25, 67 per cent say they are ‘very proud’, or ‘proud’.
This number has increased by almost ten points compared to the previous survey from the end of December last year conducted by the public opinion research organization.
Kurl attributes much of the shift to a reaction to politics south of the border.
Canadian pride much higher 10 years ago
“The one thing that has really changed the situation over the last six to eight months has been first and foremost the comments and actions by Donald Trump,” explains Kurl.
The national pride is especially strong in Atlantic Canada and Ontario, where the majority say they are very proud to be Canadian.
But heading west to Alberta, nearly half say they are not so proud with 28 per cent of Albertans say they are ‘not proud at all’ or ‘not very proud’.
Even though many numbers have bounced back from December last year, “compared to where we were 10 years ago, that level of pride has still not fully climbed back,” Kurl explains.
According to the data, the proud barometer indicated that 52 per cent of Canadians were proud to be Canadian in September 2016 — six points higher than the latest findings.
Political and economic divide
Another takeaway from the survey is the divide in political affiliation.
While most Canadians — seven in ten — say that the country offers a good quality of life, nearly a quarter Canadians disagree.
That number jumps to 42 per cent among Conservative voters — almost 20 points higher than the national average.
The economy is another sore spot.
As data shows, the more west you go in Canada, the bigger the scepticism about the business environment.
While people in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces have the highest confidence in the economy, Albertans have the lowest confidence with 47 per cent even disagree with the statement that ‘Canada is a good place to start a business’.
British Columbians are split on the accuracy of that statement, with 39 per cent agreeing and 36 per cent disagreeing.
–With files from Michael Williams.