MONTREAL -- As provincial leaders decide whether a COVID-19 vaccine should or should not be mandatory, a new poll suggests Canadians want the federal government to make that call.
Over half of Canadians Leger and the Association for Canadian Studies polled (57 per cent) said they felt the Justin Trudeau Liberal government should make the call to determine whether a potential vaccine is mandatory or not.
Alberta and the Atlantic provinces (59 per cent) felt most strongly, while 54 per cent of Quebecers felt the feds should make the call.
Just 15 per cent of Quebecers felt Francois Legault's provincial government should have the authority.
At the same time, 55 per cent of those surveyed felt the vaccine should be voluntary, and 17 per cent said they would not take the vaccine. Forty-one per cent said it should be mandatory.
On that note, over four-in-10 surveyed (41 per cent) said they would contest a mandatory vaccination as a rights violation with 52 per cent between 25 and 34 years of age agreeing it would be a violation of rights.
More with children (47 per cent) than without (39 per cent) agree that a mandatory vaccination order would be worth contesting.
When it comes to the border, the poll's numbers are clear: no crossing the 49th parallel without a vaccine.
Seventy-eight per cent of those asked said they either strongly agree (48 per cent) or somewhat agree (30 per cent) that cross-border travel should be prevented to people that refuse to take the vaccine for the novel coronavirus.
In addition, 83 per cent agreed with barring people from the US and elsewhere from entering Canada without vaccination.
The study was conducted online between Nov. 27 and Nov. 29 and included 1,566 adult Canadians.
