Canadians upbeat about future, poll finds

But 38% were unsatisfied with their love lives this past year

OTTAWA – It seems all the doom and gloom surrounding the fragile state of the world economy didn’t faze Canadians over the past year — except maybe in the bedroom.

A new national survey conducted by Ipsos-Reid exclusively on behalf of Postmedia News and Global Television indicates four in five Canadians consider 2012 to have been a good year for themselves and their families.

This represents an increase of five percentage points over the previous year and comes despite ongoing concerns about the global economy and budget cuts at all levels of government. It’s also perhaps surprising given that nearly half of respondents (48 per cent) felt their retirement plans or savings were hurt over the past 12 months.

In fact, the optimism extends into the new year as well, with a whopping 89 per cent of respondents saying they expect 2013 to be a good year.

They have great expectations for their retirement portfolios as well: two-thirds (67 per cent) believe 2013 will be a good year for their plans or savings.

John Wright, Ipsos-Reid’s senior vice-president of public affairs, says Canadians, cognizant of the difficulties facing citizens in other countries, realize things aren’t so bad here.

It also helps that the Parisbased Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development, or OECD, has consistently highlighted Canada’s economic stability, Wright said, and that unemployment remains relatively low.

“We hear that the economy is going to be the strongest of the G8,” he said.

Overall, the vast majority of respondents said 2012 was a good year for their health (82 per cent), happiness (82 per cent), jobs (75 per cent), and social lives (74 per cent).

Albertans were the most likely to say 2012 was a good year for all categories, followed by Quebecers, although the differences between the other provinces were generally minimal.

Wright said it is not surprising Albertans are the most optimistic given that the province’s economy is booming.

However, he admitted the positive vibes coursing through the rest of the country are a little surprising given the uncertainty that continues to swirl here and around the world.

“The buoyancy of it is stronger than you would expect,” he said.

“You’re looking at a country that’s gone through recession, that is still making it along, which still has its challenges.”

Yet it seems there are some things 38 per cent of Canadians would like to see improve: their love lives.

While it’s unclear why more than one in three Canadians were unsatisfied with their sexual and romantic lives in 2012, Wright said there is evidence to suggest economic concerns can negatively affect sex lives.

That might explain why Ontarians, whose province is transitioning from “have” to “have-not” economic status, were most likely to say their sex or romantic lives were bad in the past year.

Forty-two per cent of Ontarians responded that way.