Poll shows Ontarians more likely to blame provincial government for pandemic's third wave

A recent poll shows a growing number of Ontario residents believe that Premier Ford and his government are not doing a good job handling the pandemic.

A poll released by the Angus Reid Institute Friday revealed that just 31 percent of Ontarians believe that the Ford government is doing a good job, compared to the 78 percent that believed so at the same time last year.

These numbers come after Premier Ford instituted sweeping new restrictions and stay-at-home orders in the wake of the pandemic's third wave that has ravaged Ontario's health care system.

In a press conference Thursday, Ford tearfully apologized for the action, saying "When we get something wrong and we make a mistake, we'll fix it as soon as we can. I understand and accept the responsibility [for people being upset]."

The poll also found that 69 percent of Ontarians believe that the third wave was preventable, and 43 percent placed the blame at Ford's feet, both statistics more than any other province.

Nationwide, 58 percent of Canadians believe the third wave could have been prevented, with another 32 percent saying that it was inevitable.

Of those that said the third wave was preventable, Canadians nationwide were more likely to say both federal and provincial governments were responsible, at 35 percent, followed by solely the provincial government at 31 percent.

Most Canadian provinces indicated that pandemic restrictions don't go far enough, with an average of 45 percent of Canadians saying so. Quebec and the Atlantic Region were more likely to say the restrictions were just right.

Ontario's views on the restrictions changed from the last time being polled on April 5 to 8, 2021, just before the new restrictions took place. Views that the restrictions don't go far enough fell from 61 percent to 48 percent.

The Angus Reid Institute survey was conducted from April 20 to 22, 2021, among a random sample of 1,594 Canadian adults.