OTTAWA - Canadians want the federal government to turn back the spending taps starting next year, a new poll suggests.
The Canadian Press Harris-Decima survey indicates a slim majority -- 51 per cent -- believe the government should continue spending this year to create jobs and stimulate the still-sluggish economy. A strong 44 per cent said the priority should be on spending control in an effort to eliminate the federal deficit, projected to hit a record $56 billion this fiscal year.
Beyond 2010, the appetite for spending restraint jumped to 62 per cent -- double the percentage who said they'd still favour more stimulus spending.
"It shows that Canadians have a respect for balancing the budget," said Doug Anderson, Harris-Decima senior vice-president.
"They're saying this (spending) is still what we see to be a short-term measure ... But down the road, we most certainly are not going to take our eye off battling the deficit back and getting it back under control."
The survey results appear to mesh with the Harper government's plan for the March 4 budget, which will implement the second year of the Conservatives' economic stimulus plan even as it launches a spending review aimed at reining in costs the following year.
Given the findings, Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff may risk bucking public sentiment with his promise Tuesday to pour money into child care and early childhood education -- no matter how deep the deficit -- should he become prime minister.
Anderson said Canadians may be willing to accept spending more on some things, despite their opposition to continued deficit financing much beyond this year. For instance, he said health care "is probably the most likely (issue) to ever resonate with people as an excuse for spending."
But whether child care would rank as sufficient justification for opening the taps remains to be seen.
"(Ignatieff) has to convince people of the value of that investment in the face of the challenge of balancing the budget," Anderson said.
Women, young people and those with the lowest incomes were most likely to favour continued spending this year. But even among those groups, majorities called for restraint beyond 2010.
The telephone poll of just over 1,000 Canadians was conducted Thursday to Sunday and is considered accurate within plus or minus 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. The margin of error is larger for sub-samples.
