Poll: Six in 10 Canadians more concerned about a terrorist attack on Canada now than before 9/11

Ten years after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks in the United States, Canadians think that the West can’t afford to let its guard down and are open to a common security perimeter with the United States, a poll shows.

Western military actions, however, get more mixed reviews.

Ipsos Reid polled about 1,000 Canadians in late August about their attitudes to security and sovereignty in the context of the 9/11 attacks.

Women, interestingly, gave more hawkish responses than men throughout the poll, generally being more in favour of vigilance, the use of force overseas and co-operation with the U.S.

37 per cent of Canadians overall thought that U.S. military actions after the 9/11 attacks, like the invasion of Iraq, had made Canada more safe.

Albertans were more supportive, at 47 per cent, and Quebecers and British Columbians more skeptical (33 per cent and 29 per cent). More women (39 per cent) than men (34 per cent) agreed.

Fewer (35 per cent) thought that Canadian military actions had made Canada more safe, with only 23 per cent of Quebecers agreeing.

More men than women said that the media overplays the danger of a terrorist attack in Canada (57 per cent to 48 per cent).

58 per cent said they were more concerned about a terrorist attack in Canada than before 9/11, with concern highest in BC and Ontario.

One of the strongest majorities in the poll backed the North American security perimeter, with 70 per cent agreeing that Canada harmonizing its security and border policies was ‘necessary and prudent’. 81 per cent of Albertans agreed, while agreement in Quebec was slightly higher than the national average, at 73 per cent. Older Canadians and women were more likely to agree, and British Columbians less likely, at 60 per cent.

There hasn’t been a terrorist attack in North America since 9/11, but few thought that security measures could be relaxed. Only in BC did as many as a third of respondents agree. About twice as many men as women agreed (30 per cent to 16 per cent). Nationally, 23 per cent agreed.

More thought that the U.S. response to 9/11 had been excessive than the Canadian response (12 per cent to 38 per cent). Men were more likely to find the U.S. response excessive than women (41 per cent to 35 per cent).

University graduates were more likely to find the U.S. response excessive.
These are some of the findings of an Ipsos Reid poll conducted by Ipsos Reid on behalf of Global Television and Postmedia News between August 26 and 30, 2011. For this survey, a national sample of 1,012 adults from Ipsos’ Canadian online panel was interviewed online.

A survey with an unweighted probability sample of this size and a 100 per cent response rate would have an estimated margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points 19 times out of 20.