The coronavirus pandemic has put governments and societies around the world to the test as they confront what is both a public health and economic crisis—one that clearly is not going away anytime soon. BC has fared well to date in containing the spread of the virus, and stands out among Canadian provinces with a relatively strong package of economic and social policy measures.
So what do British Columbians make of the provincial government’s response, and what do they think BC’s recovery plans should look like? A newly-released survey commissioned by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives sheds light on these questions. The online survey of 2,289 BC residents was conducted by McAllister Research from May 16 to June 1, 2020.
Overall, the results show that a strong majority of British Columbians have a positive view of the province’s handling of the crisis, and believe further government action is key to a successful recovery. But large numbers of people are also worried about the pandemic’s impact on their own and others’ wellbeing, and these concerns follow existing patterns of inequality in BC.