43% of Ontarians blame province for not stopping the third wave: poll
Ontarians are more likely than other Canadians to blame their provincial government for the “preventable” third wave of COVID-19, according to a new poll.
Data released by the Angus Reid Institute on Friday shows that 69% of Ontario’s residents believe that this latest wave of the virus could have been stopped.
Across the country, 58% of people said they thought politicians and public health officials could have done more to fend it off, while 32% believe it was “inevitable.”
Forty-three percent of Ontarians see the provincial government as being primarily to blame for not stopping the third wave — a sentiment shared by 31% of people Canada-wide.
The data is based on an online survey of 1,594 Canadian adults conducted by the Angus Reid Institute between April 20 and 22.
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The poll was conducted just days after Premier Doug Ford introduced sweeping new public health measures, including giving police the power to stop people and drivers at random.
The orders, which also saw playgrounds closed and provincial border checkpoints established, were met with harsh criticism, with the former two measures quickly reversed.
“Simply put, we got it wrong. We made a mistake,” a tearful Ford said Thursday. “For that, I’m sorry, and I sincerely apologize.”
According to the data, just 31% of Ontarians feel that Ford is doing a good job of handling the pandemic, while 67% said that he is doing a poor job.
During the first wave of the virus in April of 2020, his approval sat at 78%.
To date, Ontario has reported 437,310 COVID-19 cases and 7,863 virus related deaths. A total of 2,287 people are hospitalized across the province, with 818 in the ICU.
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