Seven in 10 Canadians support year of civilian service for under 30s: Poll

Article content

A majority of Canadians are embracing the idea of requiring young people to step up for a stint  of civilian service, according to a poll.

Conducted by Angus Reid, the poll found  70% of Canadians approve of having those under 30 do one year  of civilian service — a  model that has been utilized in Germany, France, Norway, and other countries in recent years.

Canadians, the poll found, are overwhelmingly supportive of the idea of mandatory civilian service – that is, one year of time donated for those younger than 30 years of age – across a number of fields: Civil protection, public health support, environmental support and youth services.

Perhaps most key in the poll are the views of young people between the age of 18 and 29.

Comparing support minus opposition across these four broad fields yields a +36 or higher among 18- to 29-year-old men in all four and a +30 or higher among 18- to 29-year-old women across each option.

Young women are close to equally likely as young men to support each prospective field of service, aside from civil protection, which would include items like disaster response, emergency management, and firefighting, where their net score dips 13 points lower than men.

Conducted June 20-23, a poll with a probability sample of this size –1,619 Canadian adults — carries a margin of error of 2%, 19 times out of 20.

Recommended video

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

Try refreshing your browser, or
tap here to see other videos from our team.

Play Video