Most Canadians prefer tough approach in trade talks with Trump: survey

Prime Minister Mark Carney and U.S. President Donald Trump meet at the White House in Washington, D.C., on May 6, 2025. (Adrian Wyld / The Canadian Press)

Most Canadians want the government to take a “hard approach” in negotiations for a trade deal with U.S. President Donald Trump as he threatens to slap a 35-per-cent tariff on products by Aug. 1, a new survey suggests.

“For Prime Minister Mark Carney and the Canadian negotiating team, the approach appears to centre on keeping their head down rather than their elbows up,” according to the Angus Reid Institute in a report about the survey released Tuesday. “Canadians appear to want more push back.”

Three-in-five respondents said Canada should take a “hard approach,” at 63 per cent, rather than a “soft one,” at 37 per cent. The data was taken before and after Trump’s announcement of the new 35-per-cent tariff.

A “hard” approach means refusing difficult concessions even if it worsens trade relations with the U.S., according to the Angus Reid Institute. Meanwhile, a “soft” approach is defined as making tough concessions to keep a good relationship with Canada’s biggest trading partner.

At the same time, nearly half of Canadians surveyed said they support the federal government’s decision to kill the digital services tax on American tech companies in order to continue negotiations with the Trump administration.

Confidence in Carney

An equal number of respondents are confident, at 46 per cent, and not confident, at 45 per cent, that Carney will be able to deliver a good deal for Canada, according to the survey. Among those who have confidence, they cite trust in Carney as a reason at 72 per cent, while those who feel the opposite believe Trump is too difficult to deal with at 47 per cent or think Carney isn’t the right person to reach a deal at 53 per cent.

Methodology

The Angus Reid Institute conducted an online survey from July 9-13, among a randomized sample of 1,697 Canadian adults who are members of Angus Reid Forum. The sample was weighted to be representative of adults nationwide according to region, gender, age, household income, and education, based on the Canadian census. For comparison purposes only, a probability sample of this size would carry a margin of error of +/- 2.0 percentage points, 19 times out of 20. Discrepancies in or between totals are due to rounding. The survey was self-commissioned and paid for by ARI.