Via Globalnews.ca: Most Canadians support shutdowns over 2nd coronavirus wave: Ipsos poll. Excerpt:
Canadians appear to be proceeding with caution amid the COVID-19 pandemic — so much so that they would support a second shutdown if needed, according to a new poll.
The survey, conducted by Ipsos exclusively for Global News between July 8 and July 10, found 77 per cent of Canadians anticipate there will be a second wave of the novel coronavirus, despite efforts to stem its spread.
Ipsos Public Affairs CEO Darrell Bricker told Global News this number is so high because Canadians are “watching the news closely.”
“They’re treating it almost like emergency broadcasts and something that’s been very consistent coming out of our health care professionals, and the people who manage our health care system, and our politicians is that we need to prepare ourselves for a second wave, so that message is getting through,” he said.
Experts say a second wave of the virus is possible in Canada, but that it is difficult to know when that could happen or how severe it would be.
However, several countries, including South Korea, China and the United States, have already seen new spikes of COVID-19 infections.
What’s more, 83 per cent of Canadians said they would support shuttering most non-essential businesses if the country does experience a second wave.
Bricker said this number reflects the consensus from Canadians that the measures implemented at the beginning of the pandemic were successful.
“That’s really the reason only 23 per cent of the population think what we did the last time in March up until this point has been an overreaction,” he said.
“That’s almost three quarters of us saying that we think what was done was the right thing to do.”
Travelling amid COVID-19
The poll also found that Canadians are hesitant to travel as the pandemic continues, particularly to the United States.
According to the survey, 93 per cent of Canadians feel it would be too risky to travel to the U.S. this summer, and 85 per cent said the Canada-U.S. border should remain closed until at least the end of 2020.
Bricker said he didn’t find these numbers shocking at all, adding that there is a consensus across Canada that the country needs to be “very, very cautious.”
He said Canadians are watching what is happening south of the border very closely.
