More than half of residents are satisfied with the way their family, their friends and all levels of government tackled COVID-19.
Vancouver, BC [March 27, 2024] – Most British Columbians believe their elected officials did a good job in managing the public health emergency that began to affect the world four years ago, a new Research Co. poll has found.
In the online survey of a representative provincial sample, 58% of British Columbians are satisfied with the way their municipal government handled COVID-19.
Majorities of British Columbians are also satisfied with how the provincial government (52%) and the federal government (51%) managed the pandemic. The rating is significantly lower for the official opposition in both Victoria (36%) and Ottawa (35%).
More than seven-in-ten British Columbians are satisfied with the way their family (78%) and their friends (74%) handled COVID-19. At least half feel the same way about television news (55%), radio news (52%) and newspapers (50%).
Almost half of British Columbians (49%) are satisfied with how non-governmental associations managed the pandemic. The rating is lower for trade associations (39%) and unions (also 39%).
More than half of British Columbians (52%) believe COVID-19 is “definitely” or “probably” still a threat now—a proportion that rises to 61% among those aged 55 and over.
Three-in-five British Columbians (60%, -2 since a similar Research Co. poll conducted in February 2023) believe we are in a different moment and there is no need for additional public health measures related to COVID-19.
Just over one-in-four of the province’s residents (26%, +8) think we should continue to have strict public health measures in place to stop the spread of COVID-19, while 7% (-2) say COVID-19 was a hoax and we never should have altered our lives.
Respondents to this survey were asked to select their five most trusted sources of information in the event a new public health emergency were to occur this month. Almost three-in-five (58%) select their family doctor, while half mention BC Provincial Health Officer Dr. Bonnie Henry (50%) and the BC Centre for Disease Control (also 50%).
The only other entities listed that are included by at least one-in-four British Columbians are medical staff at health clinics (36%), the provincial government (33%), the federal government (31%), Canada’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr. Theresa Tam (also 31%) and television news (26%).
British Columbians are divided when asked if they expect to experience “mask mandates” in the near future. Just over two-in-five of the province’s residents (41%) think making it mandatory to wear a mask or face covering when entering an indoor premise is a possibility in the next four years, while almost half (48%) disagree with this assessment.
“There are significant regional differences when British Columbians ponder masking,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co. “While more than two-in-five residents of Northern BC (48%), Metro Vancouver (44%) and Vancouver Island (42%) think the return of this policy is possible, the proportions are lower in the Fraser Valley (38%) and Southern BC (28%).”
Majorities of British Columbians reject the notion of three other guidelines being reimplemented in the next four years: capacity restrictions for worship services, concerts and sporting events (54%), “proof of vaccination” certificates to access specific venues and locations (55%) and a ban on travel to other Canadian provinces (68%).
Methodology: Results are based on an online study conducted on March 4 to March 6, 2024, among 800 adults in British Columbia. The data has been statistically weighted according to Canadian census figures for age, gender and region in British Columbia. The margin of error—which measures sample variability—is +/- 3.5 percentage points, nineteen times out of twenty.
Find our data tables here and download the press release here.
For more information on this poll, please contact:
Mario Canseco, President, Research Co.
778.929.0490
[e] mario.canseco@researchco.ca