Support for face-covering bans drops to about 40 per cent

The vast majority of Quebecers support Bill 62, the Quebec government’s ban on wearing face coverings when dealing with public services, but that support drops to about 40 per cent elsewhere in Canada, an Angus-Reid Institute poll suggests.

The survey question focused on the niqab itself, and nationwide, 40 per cent of respondents replied the veil should be prohibited in government offices. However, support among remaining respondents was mitigated, with 31 per cent saying wearing the veil should be “discouraged but tolerated” and only 28 per cent replying the veils should be “welcome.”

The poll results were compiled from a pair of online surveys conducted by the Angus Reid Institute, one from Oct. 16-23 and one from Oct. 25-26, 2017, among representative randomized samples of 1,971 and 1,511 Canadian adults, respectively.