Wednesday, June 18, 2008

B.C. Poll Shows Gord Campbell Doing Fine WIth Carbon Tax

After several paragraphs of negative spin, the Vancouver Sun lets slip:

The poll shows the Liberals have the support of 47 per cent of decided voters, a number slightly above what they've held throughout the past year.

The NDP has 33-per-cent support, down three points from this time last year.

The seatless Green Party remained steady at 16-per-cent support, a level it has essentially held for the past year as well.

"I think the most important number is that at this point the vote hasn't changed one iota, despite the fact a lot of people knew this [the carbon tax] was coming," said Braid.

"It's been discussed since February and it hasn't had any impact whatsoever."

Probably helps that the provincial NDP is playings its usual "Don't Tax Me, Don't Tax Thee, Tax The Man Behind The Tree" routine, arguing, not a against a carbon tax per se, but just this carbon tax. I suspect that, when the dust settles, the Federal political landscape, much like the landscape in B.C., will remain more or less unchanged, which Dion earning a point or two with the electorate for showing some hitherto unsuspected courage.

2 comments:

Sean Cummings said...

One can support a party and still think a party's policy blows. I suspect that 47% number has more to do with the lack of an effective opposition in BC than a wholesale endorsement of Gordon Campbell. That said, if 52% oppose the carbon tax, there MUST be a reason why - I just can't imagine what it would be, frankly...

Raphael Alexander said...

Don't be so quick to judge. It's June 18 and gasoline was $1.48 today. Another 2.4 cents would bring it over $1.50 without speculators adding the damage. Every working class person I have talked to in B.C. since I got here thinks the carbon tax is sheer and unmitigated lunacy.

If it weren't for the fact that it appears a good 1 in 5 Vancouver residents bicycle, the numbers opposed to the tax would be higher.