Canadians to Ottawa: We Can’t Take It Anymore!

That’s the strong message Canadians are sending to Ottawa, according to a new poll conducted for the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI). The poll reveals that 70% believe high tax burdens have severely impacted their cost of living.

Conducted by Ipsos between June 26 and July 1, 2026, the poll surveyed a sample of 1,005 Canadians aged 18 and older. The results, released today, point to a growing disconnect between government spending policies and taxpayers’ priorities.

Renaud Brossard, Vice President of Communications at the MEI, stated that Canadians are feeling overwhelmed by the stress that high taxes are causing in their lives.

“Canadians are sending a clear message: they’ve had enough of paying more only to receive less. As grocery and housing prices continue to rise, taxpayers are frustrated by what they see as reckless government spending,” Brossard said.

Too Much Tax with Little in Return.  

A significant 63% of respondents reported paying too much in income tax.

Regarding government spending, 52% of Canadians believe the federal government spends too much, while only 5% feel it doesn’t spend enough. When asked if they get their money’s worth from the taxes they pay, no level of government received a majority approval. Provincial governments received the worst rating, with 56% of respondents stating they do not receive value for their tax contributions.

Subsidies Perceived as Ineffective.

66% of those polled view government-funded subsidies as not worth their cost.

A separate MEI study released last week revealed that Ontario has significantly outpaced Quebec in corporate welfare, with Ontario’s subsidy spending increasing by 209% over the past decade.

“Canadians feel they’re not getting their money’s worth,” Brossard noted, citing costly failures such as Quebec’s unsuccessful billion-dollar Northvolt battery plant and the Ontario government’s failed plan to fund electric vehicle (EV) battery plant projects in the southwest of the province.

“They have witnessed many high-profile, expensive failures, and they feel these policies are costly yet yield minimal results.”

Canadians Want Carney to Abandon His ‘Sovereign Wealth Fund’.

Public concern is mounting regarding Prime Minister Mark Carney’s proposal to establish the ‘Canada Strong Fund,’ or a sovereign wealth fund, which he announced in April with an initial injection of $25 billion. The proposal has faced substantial criticism from experts who argue it risks becoming a debt fund rather than a true wealth-building vehicle. Critics express concerns about the fund’s reliance on borrowed money while the federal government runs significant deficits, projected at $65.4 billion for the current year. This approach is seen as at odds with Carney’s reputation as a financially savvy leader.

Furthermore, the fund’s structure is regarded as a significant departure from traditional sovereign wealth fund models, which generally operate using fiscal surpluses or dedicated revenue streams, as seen in Norway.

Critics commonly assert, “It’s not so much a sovereign wealth fund; rather, it resembles an industrial policy fund in which individuals may take ownership.”

In the MEI poll, 58% of respondents opposed Canada borrowing $25 billion to finance the fund’s