Most Oppose Can-Am Union Because of Different Values While Large Minority Believes U.S. Would Want Union: Chamber Weekly CEO/Business Leader Poll by COMPAS in the Financial Post for Publication January 27, 2003 COMPAS Inc. Public Opinion and Customer Research 1
Introduction Despite recent media reports on a possible Integrated North America, Canadian CEOs and business leaders do not think that Canada should join with the United States to form one country. Most do not think that the U.S. would favour such a union either. Yet, the minority who believe that Americans would want to incorporate Canada into a single union is larger than the proportion who favour such union. Protecting Canada s access to the vital American market is the most persuasive reason for union. Meanwhile, differences in Canadian and American values and beliefs are the most persuasive reason against union. These are the key findings from the web-survey of CEOs and other business leaders conducted by COMPAS on behalf of the National Post under sponsorship of the Canadian Chamber of Commerce. Vast Majority Oppose Can-Am Union While Large Minority Believe Americans Would Want Canada Approximately four out of every five (81) business leaders do not think that Canada and the United States should join to form a single country, as shown in table 1. Sixty percent (60) of those respondents say the two countries should definitely not unite while 21 say that the two countries should probably not unite. Selected respondents responses are as follows: A union similar to Europe with a common currency and defence policy, while maintaining some cultural independence, is something that we should consider and debate seriously. I don't think a full union with the U.S. is practical in the short or medium term but more integration, such as what would be involved in a customs union, would be a good idea. Table 1: As you know, there s been talk in the media about the joining of Canada and the United States to form one country. Should Canada join the U.S. to form an integrated North America? 2
Definitely 3 Probably 16 Probably not 21 Definitely not 60 DNK/Refused 1 Intriguingly, business leaders see the U.S. as more supportive of union than they feel Canada should be about the option. In practice, far more business leaders (43; see table 2) believe that the U.S. would want to unite with Canada than believe that Canada ought to unite with the U.S. (19). Eighty-one percent (81) do not favour union with the U.S. while a smaller proportion, 55, sees the U.S. as not favouring union with Canada. Table 2: Do you think the United States would want such a union? Definitely 12 Probably 31 Probably not 45 Definitely not 10 DNK/Refused 2 Market Access Best Reason for Union; Values and Beliefs Best Reason against Union Asked what was the most persuasive reasoning for a union between Canada and the United States, 39 of business leaders said protecting our access to the vital American market, as shown in table 3. Another 43 however said that none of the reasons were persuasive, suggesting that business leaders believe the two countries should not unite to form an integrated North America (table 3). Slightly more than half of respondents (52) feel the argument that Canadian values and beliefs are too different from American ones is the most persuasive reason against a union, as outlined in table 4. Twenty-five percent (25) of business leaders think that the most persuasive reasoning against the joining of the two countries is that culturally and geographically the two countries are very different (table 4). Respondents expressed their feelings in the following statements: It's about time that we faced economic facts and seriously considered becoming a united North America. 3
The value sets and population in the U.S. are far more different from those in Canada. Our cultural differences as nations are very different. The U.S. is a melting pot whereas Canada celebrates our differences and recognizes the strength in that. Table 3: Which of the following reasons FOR a union do you find the most persuasive? [ROTATE] CHOOSE ONE Protecting our access to the vital American market Culturally and geographically Canadians and Americans are alike already We would be taken more seriously internationally We would be a lot more secure against terrorism 1 None of them are persuasive 43 39 11 7 Table 4: Which of the following reasons AGAINST a union do you find the most persuasive? [ROTATE] CHOOSE ONE Canadian values and beliefs are too different from American ones Culturally and geographically the two countries are very different The two countries have very different histories that cannot be overlooked Our economic interests are too different 2 None of them are persuasive 13 52 25 8 Methodology The National Post/COMPAS web-survey of CEOs and leaders of small, medium, and large corporations and among executives of the local and national Chambers of Commerce was conducted January 21-23, 2003. Respondents constitute an essentially hand-picked panel. Because medium and small companies are more numerous in the economy and hence among Chamber membership, the actual respondents in this consultative panel 4
are drawn more from these strata than from the stratum of the largest companies. Because of the small population of CEOs and business leaders from which the sample was drawn, the study can be considered more accurate than comparably sized general public studies. In studies of the general public, surveys of n=166 are deemed accurate to within approximately 8 percentage points 19 times out of 20. The principal and coinvestigators on this study are Conrad Winn, Ph.D. and Jennifer McLeod. 5