Affordability and well being care topped the record of Canadians’ prime points in 2025, whereas the decline of the Canada–U.S. relationship dominated the yr’s greatest information tales for Canadians, in line with new polling performed by Ipsos on behalf of World Information.
“Affordability ranked primary on the problems Canadians targeted most on this previous yr, overwhelmingly,” Ipsos Public Affairs CEO Darrell Bricker instructed World in an interview, adopted intently by well being care, “and never as a result of Canadians are joyful about it,” he mentioned.
Forty-one per cent of these polled mentioned affordability and the price of residing had been a very powerful challenge in Canada, adopted by well being care at 38 per cent.
The financial system (28 per cent) and housing (27 per cent) adopted as the following most necessary points, underscoring what Bricker described as persistent nervousness about family funds and entry to fundamental providers.
Bricker mentioned the findings present the pressures of affordability and housing are felt most acutely by youthful Canadians.
The ballot suggests a intently divided political panorama, with the Liberals and Conservatives every seen as strongest on 5 of the highest 10 points. Conservatives held a slight benefit on affordability-related issues, whereas Liberals had been seen extra favourably on well being care and the financial system.
“Normally what you discover is the social gathering that wins the election is the one which’s seen as doing one of the best job on a very powerful challenge,” Bricker mentioned. “Curiously, within the final election, that wasn’t the case. The problem of affordability was on the prime of the record and the Conservatives had been main on that, however the Liberals ended up successful.”
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Whereas affordability topped the record, Bricker mentioned the Liberals benefited from a commanding lead on managing relations with america — a difficulty the place they continue to be far forward of the Conservatives. Canada’s relationship with its southern neighbour, he mentioned, continues to outweigh even affordability issues for a lot of voters.
“They’re nonetheless 39 factors forward on who’s greatest in a position to cope with that challenge. . . The Liberals have an enormous, large lead (there).”
Following affordability and price of residing, healthcare and the financial system within the prime three respective spots, the opposite prime points for Canadians had been as follows: housing, immigration, Canada’s relationship with the U.S., rates of interest and inflation, taxes, unemployment/jobs, and crime and violence coming in final.
Canada–U.S. tensions, world conflicts formed how Canadians noticed the yr’s greatest tales
The Canada–U.S. relationship additionally dominated Canadians’ evaluation of the yr’s greatest worldwide information tales.
Greater than half — 56 per cent — of respondents mentioned U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs had been the highest story globally, adopted by one third who pointed to Trump’s return to the White Home. The conflicts in Ukraine and Gaza ranked third and fourth, respectively.
Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump maintain a press convention on the White Home in Washington, D.C., Tuesday, Oct. 7, 2025.
THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld
Bricker mentioned Canadians say they see these tales as deeply interconnected.
“We see (the highest information tales) as overwhelmingly dominated by issues that Donald Trump has touched,” mentioned Bricker, including that most of the tales Canadians are watching contain actions “being accomplished to Canada, or they’re observing being accomplished by Donald Trump and his administration.”
“So (Trump) is built-in into all the pieces that Canadians are proper now.”
Ipsos additionally discovered rising pessimism about world conflicts. Canadians are intently following wars overseas, Bricker mentioned, “however they’re not watching it with any diploma of optimism.”
The ballot discovered the remaining prime worldwide information tales to Canadians in 2025 had been the Trump administration’s crackdown on immigration, the developments on the Epstein information, the rise of synthetic intelligence applied sciences, the assassination of proper wing activist Charlie Kirk, world pressures from migration and immigration, and Elon Musk’s actions throughout the Trump Administration’s Division of Authorities Effectivity (DOGE).
As for home tales of the yr, 42 per cent of respondents mentioned 2025 was most outlined by the deterioration of Canada–U.S. relations, narrowly edging out protection of the rising price of residing at 41 per cent. The election of Prime Minister Mark Carney ranked third at 33 per cent.
The opposite prime home tales had been the Canada Submit strike, Justin Trudeau’s resignation as Prime Minister, the Toronto Blue Jays making it to the World Collection, the homelessness disaster, immigration coverage adjustments, the Air Canada strike, and in final place the chapter and everlasting closure of Hudson’s Bay.
Each surveys had been performed on-line between Dec. 8 and 15 amongst 1,502 Canadians aged 18 and over. The outcomes had been weighted to replicate the nationwide inhabitants and are thought-about correct inside a margin of error of plus or minus 3.1 share factors, 19 instances out of 20.
