Majority of Canadians Say Taxes, Government Spending Are Too High, Poll Finds

A giant Canadian flag hangs on the side of a government office building in downtown Ottawa, June 30, 2020. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

Two-thirds of Canadians say they believe the amount of income tax they pay is too high, while over half of Canadians say government spending is too high, according to an Ipsos poll.

“Beyond results on views of spending levels and the degree of accountability and transparency in spending practices displayed by the federal government, this study also highlights the extent to which taxpayers are dissatisfied with the allocation of funds invested, with 64 percent indicating that the government is not doing a good job at allocating funds to the most important issues facing Canada today,” Ipsos said about the survey poll conducted between June 29 and July 3 for the Montreal Economic Institute.

“This research also demonstrates that two-thirds (67 percent) of Canadian taxpayers believe they are paying too much money in taxes each year and, conversely, only 33 percent feel the ‘rich’ are paying their fair share of taxes.”

According to the poll, a total of 29 percent said they believe the amount they pay in income tax is “much too high,” and 39 percent said taxes are “too high.” A total of 28 percent said the amount they pay in income taxes is at an acceptable level, while less than 2 percent said taxes are “too low” or “much too low.”

A total of 26 percent of those polled said they believe government spending is “much too high,” while 29 percent said spending was too high. Meanwhile, 27 percent said they believed spending was at an “acceptable level,” 7 percent said spending was “too low,” and 1 percent said spending was “much too low.”

Canadians were split on the idea of the rich paying over 50 percent of their income in taxes, with 43 percent saying they agreed with the statement and 46 percent saying they opposed it.

When asked if they thought the federal government was effectively allocating funds to address the most important issues in the country, 64 percent answered “no,” 23 percent answered “yes,” and 13 percent said they did not know.

When it came to the role higher government spending has played in Canada’s inflation rate, the majority of respondents said there was a direct correlation. A total of 30 percent said they “strongly agree” that higher government spending over the last three years has contributed to higher inflation, 35 percent said they agreed, 17 percent said they somewhat disagreed, 8 percent said they strongly disagreed, and 10 percent said they did not know.

The survey also showed Canadians had mixed feelings on carbon taxes, with 41 percent supporting, 45 percent opposing, and 15 percent saying they did not know or preferred not to answer.