If it were up to a majority of Canadians, personal travel outside of the country would be prohibited – including for politicians and citizens alike.
That’s according to a new poll released Thursday by the Angus Reid Institute which looked at consensus on international travel amid the ongoing second wave of the COVID-19 pandemic.
It appears a mix of heightened anxiety and equally high infection rates mixed with general pandemic fatigue and fury is culminating in at least 65 per cent of those surveyed calling for the border to quell non-essential travel.
Meanwhile, 26 per cent said they agree with maintaining the federal government’s current approach, which has been to strongly discourage such travel, but not disallow it. The remaining nine per cent said government should say nothing and leave it up to Canadians.
Two-thirds of Canadians say the border should be closed to travel, rather than the current plan which strongly discourages non-essential trips:https://t.co/pKCUXNZaQV pic.twitter.com/l9XcA1CNX2
— Angus Reid Institute (@angusreidorg) January 14, 2021
Seventy per cent of respondents said they cancelled or put off planned international or domestic travel since the pandemic began roughly a year ago.
In recent weeks, high-profile health officials and politicians have fallen into the spotlight for seeking sun across border lines, despite Canadian and provincial health officers calling for non-essential travel to stop.
Nearly nine-in-ten respondents said that while traveling abroad may not be illegal, politicians should be held to a higher standard and stay home. That view increased to 93 per cent in agreement in B.C., and dropped to the lowest in Alberta, at 84 per cent.
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