The PC Party candidates led this promise from the opposition to the government during last summer’s election. A poll released Monday by an Ontario-based research firm found that only four in 10 Nova Scotians were generally satisfied with the way the Houston government runs the county, while the remaining 60 percent were either unhappy or unsure. for the direction that Nova Scotia is taking under the government. Despite this lukewarm support, the survey showed that Houston, who will deliver his annual State of the Union address on Tuesday, had a strong lead over his political rivals and that computers continued to be popular enough for to win another majority. “They have not made any critical mistake that they have lost the support of the people who voted for the computers, feeling that they have not given up, but it shows that there is [are] “Troubled waters ahead,” said David Coletto, chief executive of Abacus Data, an online polling company. David Coletto is the CEO of Abacus Data. (Blair Gable / Abacus Data)
This turmoil has to do with the PC’s main campaign promise – “healthcare correction” – and how respondents felt about it. In the survey, three times as many people felt that computers made no progress or were less than expected in improving health care than those who saw improvement. Perhaps equally disturbing was the feeling of many respondents that the Houston government would not keep its promise to “fix” the health care system. Only 10 percent said it could “definitely happen,” while 43 percent said it “probably could.” The remaining 46 percent said they either could not or “certainly” could not. This feeling could explain why, on the day his government released the plan to improve health care, Houston used different words to describe the ultimate goal. “Correction is a very subjective word,” Houston said on April 22. “It’s in the viewer’s eye. I have used it in the past. We will make significant improvements in healthcare. And for many people, specific situations will be a solution.” Prime Minister Tim Houston speaks to reporters at the Province House on April 22, the day his government announced its plan for health care. (Robert Short / CBC)
Coletto said the change appeared to be an attempt by Houston to manage the Nova Scotians’ expectations. “When people believe you and vote for you because of just one promise and you are now starting to make it back, it could be a difficult place for a government,” he said. “And this is a difficult issue. “There is no doubt that fixing the healthcare system is not an easy solution. But people are waiting for action on that. “I think this government will probably live or die or it will prosper or it will be challenged by the perception that it can improve the system.” Abacus Data conducted the online poll over the course of a week, starting April 14, with 500 Nova Scotians aged 18 and over invited to take part in the survey. Participants were selected to reflect the geographical and demographic composition of the province. The margin of error for this type of poll with this sample size is plus or minus 4.4, 19 times 20. The poll was paid for by Abacus Data and Summa Strategies, a public relations firm and lobby based in Ottawa.

The cost of living is rising

The aim of the poll was to try to gauge how respondents felt about the first eight months in power of the Houston administration and the challenges facing the county. Healthcare was the top issue and also came first on the list of the government’s top priorities. Other key issues for the government included rising living costs, affordability of housing, tackling COVID-19, and the price of electricity. In the last election, and again during the spring session, the NDP defended those struggling with high housing costs. The Houston government has since made it one of its priorities and has taken steps to try to increase the number of new homes, especially in the Halifax area. During the meeting, New Democrats and Liberal MPs also called on the government to do more to help those struggling with rising food and fuel costs. Liberal leadership candidate Jacques Churchill has also made affordability a key issue in his campaign to replace Ian Rankin as party leader. All of this is evidence that opposition parties may have heard what the pollsters recorded in this survey – that there are growing concerns among Nova Scotians about rising daily costs.