However, regional variation in the 2001 data is sufficiently small that we don’t consider this limitation to be serious. It is also important to consider that while the 2001 data covers all of Canada, the 2017 data includes just Ontario and Quebec.
Where exact replicas of each question did not exist, we either used closely related questions or we excluded them. Not all the survey questions from 2001 were asked again in 2017. We sought to get to the heart of Canadians’ beliefs about trade and globalization through an analysis of a 2017 survey by the Mowat Centre that replicated a set of questions from another survey conducted in 2001 by the Centre for Research and Information on Canada. It is difficult to see trends and understand underlying attitudes using opinion surveys on trade, because surveys so often ask questions driven by the concerns of the moment. But there is some risk, as several of the attributes associated with populist voting are present in Canada.
Impacts of globalization on idologies free#
This fairly benign state of affairs might surprise people who remember the great free-trade election of 1988 or the 2001 demonstrations in Quebec City against the proposed free trade area of the Americas.Ĭan it be that Canadians are more relaxed now about trade agreements and globalization than they were at the beginning of this century? They seem less worried, yes, but should we expect a retreat into populism and disengagement from the world like that seen in other rich countries?īased on our analysis of Canadian opinion, that’s unlikely. With free trade in North America dominating headlines and ongoing concern over the rise of populism across Western democracies, it’s more important than ever for policy-makers to fully understand what Canadians think about free trade and globalization.įrom recent surveys, we know Canadians are positive about free trade and are generally supportive of NAFTA.