A new poll shows Canadians would much rather see an increase in government spending than a further reduction to the GST in the upcoming federal budget.
The Strategic Counsel, which conducted the poll for Â鶹´«Ã½ and The Globe and Mail, asked respondents to rate the top three things they'd like to see in the January 27 budget.
"Head and shoulders, above anything else, people want to see infrastructure spending," Peter Donolo, a partner with the Strategic Counsel, told CTV.ca.
Out of the 10 choices, a GST cut ranked ninth:
- invest in infrastructure construction -- especially transit, roads and highways: 54 per cent
- cut personal income taxes: 39 per cent
- invest in training programs: 34 per cent
- make the economy more competitive and productive in the long term: 28 per cent
- cut federal government spending: 27 per cent
- ensure private sector pension plans are able to pay out full pensions: 25 per cent
- provide major financial aid to important sectors such as the auto sector, manufacturing and the forestry sector: 25 per cent
- increase unemployment benefits : 18 per cent
- cut the GST by a further percentage point: 11 per cent
- offer one-time $400 tax rebate: 8 per cent
The survey also showed the majority of Canadians think the recession will last for at least another year:
- three months: 2 per cent
- six months: 14 per cent
- end of 2009: 32 per cent
- into 2010: 49 per cent
The poll comes as Prime Minister Stephen Harper meets with the provincial and territorial premiers Friday to hear their wish list ahead of the budget.
Finance Minister Jim Flaherty has also criss-crossed the country for pre-budget consultations.
Flaherty has warned Canadians that they should be prepared for a major deficit. Earlier this month, CTV reported that the Conservatives are planning on tabling a federal budget with a $40 billion deficit.
The deficit would be the highest since the 1993 budget and $10 billion more than Prime Minister Stephen Harper indicated in a late 2008 interview with CTV.
Still, the Strategic Counsel poll shows the majority of Canadians, 59 per cent, think going into a deficit now is the right thing to do. Thirty-four per cent said it was the wrong thing to do.
Meanwhile, the Liberals, now under the leadership of Michael Ignatieff, have narrowed the gap with the Tories on the issue of dealing with the downturn in the economy.
Forty per cent of respondents said the Tories were best able to manage the economy in a recession, compared to 38 per cent for the Liberals. Eight per cent said neither party could do it.
"We saw during the 2008 election campaign the Conservatives had a real edge (12 per cent) over the Liberals in terms of ability to deal with an economic downturn," Donolo said. "Now that gap has really been closed and the Liberals and the Conservatives are virtually tied in terms of economic credibility."
If the Liberals are not happy with the upcoming budget, 49 per cent of respondents said the Liberals should vote for it anyway, compared to 43 per cent who said it should be voted down.
If it is voted down, 49 per cent said they would prefer an immediate federal election compared to 44 per cent who would like to see a Liberal-NDP coalition led by Ignatieff.
Across Canada, 36 per cent said they'd vote Conservative if an election were held the next day, compared to 30 per cent for Liberals, 18 per cent for the NDP, 11 per cent for the Bloc Quebecois and 5 per cent for the Green Party.
The poll of 1,000 Canadians was conducted Jan. 12-14 and is accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.
