More than half of Canadians want cuts to the federal public service: poll

The Canadian flag flies over the Peace Tower on Parliament Hill on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025 in Ottawa. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld

More than half of Canadians feel the size and cost of government should be reduced in the years ahead, according to a new Leger survey, as the federal government looks for ways to cut spending.

Fifty-four per cent of those surveyed supported cuts, with just four per cent believing there should be growth. Twenty-four per cent want things to stay the same.

“There is a bit of a bit of a knee-jerk reaction among Canadians, particularly those who don’t work in the government, that feel that maybe there’s a few too many government workers,” Leger’s Executive Vice-President Andrew Enns told CTV News.

The survey also found half of Canadians believe the quality of government services has declined, or has not kept pace with the growth in size and cost of the bureaucracy since 2016. Eleven per cent think it has improved.

The Leger polling was done for the Canadian Taxpayers Federation (CTF). It surveyed 1,533 Canadians online and can’t be assigned a margin of error.

CTF cites federal records that show the government has added almost 99,000 employees since 2016.

“Canadians want the Carney government to roll up their sleeves and to cut the size and cost of the bureaucracy,” said CTF’s Federal Director Franco Terrazzano.

Prime Minister Mark Carney has promised a fall budget, and over the summer asked government departments and agencies to find savings for the next three years, up to 15 per cent by 2028-29.

“I think what I found surprising was that there was a really strong sentiment about the size of the bureaucracy and the need to maybe make it smaller amongst that older generation, that 55 plus,” said Enns.

The survey found 71 per cent of respondents aged 55+ thought government size should be reduced, compared to 49 per cent aged 35-54 and 34 per cent aged 18-34.

“That’s an important voter population for our newly elected prime minister…If he looks at this poll, he would take some note of that as they’re making their decisions around budget time,” said Enns.

Criticism of poll’s findings

But the largest multi-professional labour union in Canada is casting doubts about the poll’s findings.

“This poll tells us more about Canadian Taxpayers Federation’s agenda than what Canadians actually think,” said Stéphanie Fréchette with The Professional Institute of the Public Service of Canada (PIPSC).

PIPSC represents over 70,000 scientists and professionals in both federal and provincial public service.

“Everyone wants an efficient government, including us public servants,” Fréchette told CTV News.

“Cuts sound great until you ask Canadians, what services are they willing to lose?”

The union is concerned any potential cuts could have serious impacts to areas like food safety and inspection or veteran support. The survey did not ask any questions about the impact of any cuts, or what Canadians may be prepared to give up in favour of them.

See Leger’s full omnibus survey for the methodology