MAJORITY BELIEVE OTTAWA HAS NO REAL VIRUS PLAN
Amajority of Canadians believe the goal of having most of the country vaccinated for COVID-19 by next September is “good enough,” although a significant group of Canadians believe the Liberal government is making up its vaccine strategy as it goes along, according to new polling from Maru/Blue Canada.
The survey comes as the Liberal government is defending itself from criticism of its vaccine procurement strategy, and the fact Canada was not prepared with vaccine manufacturing capability. Still, according to the poll, conducted over the weekend and on Monday, 57 per cent of Canadians believe the government is doing “good enough” on getting a vaccine compared with 43 per cent who said they are not.
Slightly more than one-third of Canadians — 37 per cent — said they believed the government “has a plan” for its vaccine strategy. But the rest, at 63 per cent, said the government is making it up as they go.
There remains a high degree of vaccine hesitancy: 48 per cent of respondents said they plan to “wait longer” before they get the new vaccine, and 16 per cent said they won't get it. Just 36 per cent of respondents said they would get the vaccine immediately.
As well, the poll found that if something goes sideways with Canada's COVID-19 vaccine process, just 23 per cent of Canadians would vote a different party into power. Thirty-two per cent would not, and 45 per cent said their decision would depend on other things.
“It suggests that the public is being prudent, they recognize that this is a task that is going to be variable,” said pollster John Wright. “They're not politicizing it, they're giving the government some latitude to make it happen.”
The survey results, published Wednesday, show 68 per cent of Canadians believe the vaccine will receive Health Canada approval in March, at the latest. But there are many who believe it will take longer, with 17 per cent estimating the vaccine will be approved by May or June. A further eight per cent said it will be approved in the summer or before September, and seven per cent said they don't believe it will be available until late in the fall of 2021.
There's slightly less optimism about when the vaccine will actually be delivered to Canada. A large group, 46 per cent, believe doses will arrive between December 2020 and March 2021, while 26 per cent think April to June is more likely. Fifteen per cent said it will arrive between July and September, with the remaining 13 per cent pointing to next fall or winter as the likely arrival date.
Despite a general optimism around a COVID vaccine next year, many Canadians believe they won't be the first in line to receive the shots, with prioritization given to front line workers, the elderly or immunocompromised. Just 20 per cent of respondents believe they will get their shots between December 2020 and March 2021, while 35 per cent think they'll get jabbed between April and June, and 22 per cent between July and September. Just 10 per cent believe they won't have a chance until fall or winter 2021, and 13 per cent believe it won't happen until 2022.
There is wide-ranging support for awaiting Health Canada's approval of the vaccine. Seventy-three per cent of respondents believe Canada should follow an independent approval path, while 16 per cent said we should approve it immediately after the United Kingdom does, and 11 per cent said we should launch once the United States approves a vaccine.
The poll was conducted between Nov. 27, 2020 and Nov. 30, 2020 among 1,509 Canadians, with a margin +/- 2.9.