The percentage of Canadians who support the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act is nearly the same as the percentage who oppose it — but slightly more are against it, according to new polling by Mainstreet Research.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Act for the first time in Canadian history on Monday to give police more powers to remove demonstrators who’ve been in Ottawa for more than three weeks to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
On Friday and Saturday, police forcibly removed protesters from Parliament Hill and pushed them off nearby streets.
When Mainstreet asked whether they support or oppose the federal government’s invocation of the Act, 39 per cent of respondents said they strongly oppose it, compared to 38 per cent who said they strongly support it. Another 13 per cent said they somewhat support it, while five per cent said they’re somewhat opposed, and four per cent said they’re unsure.
The survey of 1,323 Canadian adults was conducted on Wednesday and Thursday using automated phone interviews.
Two people were trampled on Friday when police on horseback pushed back crowds while officers on foot rushed in. Interim Ottawa police chief Steve Bell said the people involved got up and walked away with no serious injuries.
On Saturday, the horses were removed from the front lines; police were armed instead with helmets and batons to push back protesters. Officers also used pepper spray against demonstrators who held their ground while police tried to advance.
This is the scene in front of Parliament Hill right now. Police are aggressively pushing forward. We are nearly in front of Peace Tower now. #cdnpoli pic.twitter.com/22f241zHdL
— Rachel Emmanuel (@Emmanuel_Rach) February 19, 2022
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On Thursday, Bell said Ottawa police were finally able to remove the protesters because of support from all levels of government, including the federal Emergencies Act.
Take a look at this clip. Big push from police – we are at the West Block now. We were walking backwards but a tent structure and some hay bales were in the way & people couldn’t get around fast enough. I got knocked over & people fell on me until some protesters pulled me out. pic.twitter.com/0vxLUjQsAv
— Rachel Emmanuel (@Emmanuel_Rach) February 19, 2022
Respondents who said they strongly support use of the Act were most likely to be Liberal supporters, or 79.9 per cent.
Those who strongly opposed the measure were most likely to express support for the People’s Party of Canada, or 93.8 per cent, followed by Conservative supporters at 75.7 per cent.
Since Candice Bergen became the Tory party’s interim leader and opposed the government’s use of the Act, support for the party jumped 10 points from Mainstreet’s polling last month.
In an update on Saturday, Bell said protesters can expect financial sanctions and criminal charges, and the investigation will go on for months.
“We will hold people accountable for taking our streets over,” he said.
The margin of error for the poll is plus or minus 2.7 per cent at the 95 per cent confidence level.
This story was copy-edited after publication.
More Canadians strongly oppose Emergencies Act: Mainstreet poll - iPolitics.ca
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