OTTAWA -- A majority of Canadians believe Prime Minister Stephen Harper was wrong to skip a recent, high-profile international AIDS conference in Toronto, according to a major new poll.
The Ipsos Reid survey, conducted for CanWest News Service and Global National, found 54 per cent of Canadians disapproved of Harper's decision not to attend the conference and delay a planned funding announcement because the issue had become "too politicized." Forty-three per cent supported the prime minister.
Resentment was highest in Quebec, where 61 per cent of those surveyed characterized Harper's actions as "the wrong thing to do."
The Quebec numbers come as bad news for the Tories, who need to improve their fortunes there to have a shot at majority government in the next election.
Recent polling shows residents there also have serious reservations about Harper's foreign policy, including a commitment to long-term deployment to Afghanistan and unabashed support of Israel in the Middle East conflict.
Ontario was similar to Quebec on the AIDS conference, while most Albertans (54 per cent) rallied behind their home-province prime minister and said he was right to avoid it.
Ipsos Reid senior vice president John Wright called the AIDS conference "a character issue" for Harper, and one with which his base seems to be with him.
"This really is an issue where, if you show up, you might get yelled down and probably will it means it's a lose-lose," Wright said of the conference. "So there's a constituency out there that is not against AIDS funding, but certainly against disrespect for the prime minister and don't see it as a winning situation."
Harper chose to tour the arctic rather than fly to Toronto, drawing fire from both conference delegates and opposition political parties. The Conservatives countered criticism by arguing the federal government was well represented by Health Minister Tony Clement.
Clement enraged attendees further by delaying the funding announcement, however, and was later quoted suggesting the gathering had been skewed by activists and "so-called experts." Some resorted to heckling the minister at a candlelight vigil in honour of different groups in society affected by the deadly virus.
Wright suggested despite weak support in Ontario and Quebec for the decision to skip the conference, the national spread suggests the issue may not hurt Harper too much in the long run.
"I always say that in order to get a majority government in this country, you need 43 per cent," he said. "So when a higher amount is with the side that you took, then you're doing not too badly."
The poll also found younger adults (62 per cent among those aged 18-34) and women (60 per cent) were much more likely to disagree with the prime minister's stance.
The survey of 1002 adult Canadians was conducted from Aug. 22-24, 2006. It is considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=99f2d792-a03e-4ab7-b7ae-8fbe63812a92&k=55646
The Ipsos Reid survey, conducted for CanWest News Service and Global National, found 54 per cent of Canadians disapproved of Harper's decision not to attend the conference and delay a planned funding announcement because the issue had become "too politicized." Forty-three per cent supported the prime minister.
Resentment was highest in Quebec, where 61 per cent of those surveyed characterized Harper's actions as "the wrong thing to do."
The Quebec numbers come as bad news for the Tories, who need to improve their fortunes there to have a shot at majority government in the next election.
Recent polling shows residents there also have serious reservations about Harper's foreign policy, including a commitment to long-term deployment to Afghanistan and unabashed support of Israel in the Middle East conflict.
Ontario was similar to Quebec on the AIDS conference, while most Albertans (54 per cent) rallied behind their home-province prime minister and said he was right to avoid it.
Ipsos Reid senior vice president John Wright called the AIDS conference "a character issue" for Harper, and one with which his base seems to be with him.
"This really is an issue where, if you show up, you might get yelled down and probably will it means it's a lose-lose," Wright said of the conference. "So there's a constituency out there that is not against AIDS funding, but certainly against disrespect for the prime minister and don't see it as a winning situation."
Harper chose to tour the arctic rather than fly to Toronto, drawing fire from both conference delegates and opposition political parties. The Conservatives countered criticism by arguing the federal government was well represented by Health Minister Tony Clement.
Clement enraged attendees further by delaying the funding announcement, however, and was later quoted suggesting the gathering had been skewed by activists and "so-called experts." Some resorted to heckling the minister at a candlelight vigil in honour of different groups in society affected by the deadly virus.
Wright suggested despite weak support in Ontario and Quebec for the decision to skip the conference, the national spread suggests the issue may not hurt Harper too much in the long run.
"I always say that in order to get a majority government in this country, you need 43 per cent," he said. "So when a higher amount is with the side that you took, then you're doing not too badly."
The poll also found younger adults (62 per cent among those aged 18-34) and women (60 per cent) were much more likely to disagree with the prime minister's stance.
The survey of 1002 adult Canadians was conducted from Aug. 22-24, 2006. It is considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
http://www.canada.com/ottawacitizen/news/story.html?id=99f2d792-a03e-4ab7-b7ae-8fbe63812a92&k=55646
