The vast majority of Toronto voters say climate change spells big trouble for the city and will affect their choice of candidates in upcoming elections, according to a new public opinion survey.In a random poll of 1,157 Toronto citizens conducted June 8 and 9 by Forum Research, eight in 10 agreed with the statement that “climate change is a serious problem for Toronto,” while two-thirds of respondents said they agreed strongly. About 12 per cent said they disagreed with the statement, with about 7 per cent saying they strongly disagreed. About one in 10 said they neither agreed nor disagreed.The poll is considered accurate within three percentage points, 19 times out of 20.“There is huge, huge concern about climate change,” said Lorne Bozinoff, president of Forum Research. “Eighty-one per cent are saying that it’s a serious problem for Toronto. Polling numbers seldom get higher than that in terms of that many people agreeing on the same issue.”Those most likely to say that climate change is a big problem for the Big Smoke include residents 34 years of age and younger (83 per cent), between 35 and 44 years old (85 per cent), 65 and over (85 per cent), women (87 per cent), those who earn between $20,000 and $40,000 annually (86 per cent), and people with a post-graduate degree (86 per cent), the survey found.“Older people who have more experience with climate I think are saying this isn’t like the old days. And young people, they’re oriented towards I’ll say social issues and environmental issues and they probably are giving higher numbers because of that,” Bozinoff said. He added that on this question there was very little variation between residents in the suburbs and the former City of Toronto. The survey found that about two-thirds of respondents, or 67 per cent, said that climate change would impact their choice of candidates in upcoming elections, with 43 per cent saying it would “ ...
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