Canada poll names affordability top
- An Angus Reid Institute poll released April 27 found Canadians want Prime Minister Mark Carney’s Liberal government to focus on affordability over the next year. - Fifty-two per cent picked reducing living costs as Ottawa’s top challenge, while 70 per cent said Carney’s government has fallen short on affordability. - The findings land one year after Carney’s April 28, 2025 minority win, with more Canadians saying Canada is off track. (angusreid.org)
Canadians want Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government to spend its second year on one issue above all others: the cost of living. (angusreid.org) (620ckrm.com) An Angus Reid Institute poll of 2,013 Canadians released April 27 found 52 per cent named reducing the cost of living as the federal government’s biggest challenge over the next 12 months. Another 31 per cent chose managing the relationship with U.S. President Donald Trump. (angusreid.org) (620ckrm.com) The same poll found 70 per cent said Carney’s Liberals have fallen short on addressing the high cost of living, and 67 per cent said they have missed expectations on housing affordability. By contrast, 64 per cent said the government met or exceeded expectations on improving Canada’s international reputation, 57 per cent on diversifying trade, and 56 per cent on managing relations with Trump. (angusreid.org) (620ckrm.com) The numbers mark Carney’s first anniversary in office after the Liberals won a minority government on April 28, 2025. Angus Reid found Canadians split on whether the government has met its broader promises, with 41 per cent saying yes and 41 per cent saying no. (angusreid.org) The public mood in the same survey tilted negative overall. Forty-two per cent said Canada is on the wrong track, while 34 per cent said it is on the right one. (angusreid.org) Affordability has been building as a political problem for months, not just in this one snapshot. Angus Reid said in March that concern over the cost of living had reached a three-year high among lower-income households, with 68 per cent of people in households earning under C$50,000 naming it the country’s top issue. (angusreid.org) Housing has reinforced that pressure. Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said April 17 that the seasonally adjusted annual rate of housing starts fell 6 per cent in March from February, to 235,852 units, while its six-month trend measure fell 2.9 per cent to 248,378. (cmhc-schl.gc.ca 1) (cmhc-schl.gc.ca 2) Carney still holds stronger marks on files that dominated the 2025 campaign, especially trade and foreign policy. Angus Reid found 58 per cent approve of his performance as prime minister, and the Liberals lead the Conservatives 42 per cent to 35 per cent in current vote intention. (angusreid.org) That leaves Carney with a familiar split-screen at the one-year mark: voters give him passing grades abroad, but they are still waiting for relief at home. (angusreid.org) (620ckrm.com)
