(Angus Reid Global Monitor) - Many adults in Canada are concerned about their country’s financial status, according to a poll by Angus Reid Strategies for Corus Radio. 79 per cent of respondents expect a decline in property values across Canada, and 70 per cent think it is likely that the federal government will run a deficit.

In addition, 64 per cent of respondents think Canada will fall into a recession next year, and 31 per cent expect an influx of Americans moving to Canada to look for jobs.

Canadians renewed the House of Commons in January 2006. The Conservative party—led by Stephen Harper—received 36.3 per cent of the vote, and secured 124 seats in the 308-member lower house. Harper formed a minority administration after more than 12 years of government by the Liberal party.

Since last year, defaults on so-called subprime mortgages—credit given to high-risk borrowers—have caused volatility in domestic and financial markets and raised concerns that the U.S. economy could fall into a recession.

Earlier this year, the U.S. government took control of mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Other financial institutions—including Bear Stearns, Merril Lynch, Lehman Brothers, American International Group (AIG), IndyMac Bancorp and Washington Mutual—have been sold, placed under bankruptcy protection, or received emergency loans from the Federal Reserve.

Yesterday, Harper discussed the current state of affairs in Canada, saying, "We’re not going to get into a situation like we have in the United States where we’re panicking and annunciating a different plan every day. (...) The Canadian economy has continued to create jobs—it’s slower than it was, but it continues to grow. In Canada, we had a fairly stable mortgage sector and obviously our banks are in a stable situation."

The next federal election in Canada is scheduled for Oct. 14.

Polling Data

How likely do you think each of the following scenarios is to actually happen in Canada over the next year?

Source: Angus Reid Strategies
Methodology: Online interviews with 1,007 Canadian adults, conducted on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1, 2008. Margin of error is 3.1 per cent.

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