Three out of 10 Albertans say they feel the rest of Canada respects them, while in Ontario that number is double, according to a new survey.
The survey comes as U.S. President Donald Trump has threatened tariffs on Canada, and the country is considering retaliatory actions, including tariffs or a suspension of energy exports if he follows through.
However, Alberta’s Premier Danielle Smith said she doesn’t want oil and gas exports to be part of the tariff response.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford has said Canada needs to come before provincial interests.
A recent Angus Reid survey asked Canadians whether they felt their province was respected in the country. It also asked whether they see themselves as Canadians first, or if their provincial identity was more important.
A majority of Albertans (71 percent) said they disagreed with the statement “my province is respected by the rest of the country.” Just 29 percent said they agreed with it.
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That number doubles in Ontario, where 64 percent of residents said they agreed that the province was respected in other parts of Canada. Thirty-six percent disagreed.
The number of Alberta residents who feel respected has dropped by 16 percent since 2016, when 45 percent said they felt they were respected by the rest of Canada.
In Ontario, the number has increased by 5 percent since 2016, when 59 percent said they believed other Canadians respected them.
The survey results show many provinces have concerns over how the rest of Canada views them.
In B.C., 67 percent of residents said they feel respected in other parts of the country. That number was 39 percent in Saskatchewan and 42 percent in Manitoba.
When it came to Quebec, 44 percent of residents said they felt respected around the country.
In the Atlantic provinces, 26 percent agreed that the rest of Canada respected them.
Provincial Giving vs. Receiving
The survey also asked Canadians if they felt their province contributed more to the country than they received back. Most agreed.
In Alberta, 81 percent agreed they contributed more than they received. That number dropped 5 percent since 2016 when it was at 86 percent.
Sixty-eight percent of Ontario residents say they contribute more to the country than they receive. In 2016, that number was 63 percent.
On the West Coast, 73 percent of B.C. residents said they felt their province gave more than it received, a jump from 68 percent in 2016.
In the prairie provinces, 75 percent of Saskatchewan residents said they gave more than they received. That is down from 81 percent who felt the same in 2016. Manitoba saw a 10 percent drop in the number of residents who said the province gave more than it received, from 51 percent in 2016 to 41 percent in 2024.
Sixty percent of Quebecois said the province contributes more than it gets. That is up from 52 percent in 2016.
Atlantic residents’ perception has changed slightly since 2016, when 45 percent said they gave more than they received. In 2024, that number was 44 percent.
Federal Fairness
All the provinces feel they are not getting their fair share from the federal government, according to the survey results.
When asked if they felt their province was treated fairly by the national government, 30 percent of Albertans said yes. That number was 36 percent in 2016.
Ontario residents were more likely to feel the federal government treated them fairly, with 72 percent agreeing. However, that was 3 percent lower than in 2016.
In B.C., 48 percent said they agreed the province was treated fairly by Ottawa, a 13 percent drop from 2016.
Both Saskatchewan and Manitoba also saw a drop in the number of residents who felt the national government treated their provinces fairly. In Saskatchewan, 27 percent agreed the federal government treated them fairly. However, that was down from 40 percent who said the same in 2016. In Manitoba, 46 percent said they felt the federal government was fair to them, a drop from 66 percent in 2016.
Forty-one percent of Quebec residents said that Ottawa treated the province fairly, a decrease from 59 percent in 2016.
In Atlantic Canada, 36 percent said the federal government treated the provinces fair. It was a drop from 49 percent in 2016.
Canadian Identity
The survey found that most residents see themselves as Canadians first, and provincial residents second, including in Alberta.
Angus Reid found that the majority of Ontario residents see themselves as Canadians first, and Ontarioians second, with 91 percent saying their Canadian identity outweighs their provincial one. Nine percent said they identify as Ontario residents before Canadian citizens.
In Alberta, 62 percent say they define themselves as Canadian first. Another 37 percent said they see themselves first as Albertans.
Sixty-eight percent of B.C. residents said they were Canadians first, with 32 percent saying they identify first as B.C. residents.
In Saskatchewan, 61 percent said they saw themselves as Canadians first, while 39 percent said their provincial identity comes before their national one.
Those numbers jumped in Manitoba, where 74 percent said they were Canadian first. Twenty-six percent said they saw themselves first as residents of Manitoba.
In Quebec, 38 percent said they saw themselves as Canadians first. Slightly less said they were primarily Quebecois (32 percent).
The majority of New Brunswick residents said their Canadian identity was primary (75 percent). A quarter said they saw themselves first as residents of New Brunswick.
For 58 percent of Nova Scotia residents, their Canadian identity came first. Another 42 percent said they see themselves first as Nova Scotians.
Sixty-three percent of those in Nova Scotia said they valued their provincial identity first, with 37 percent saying being Canadian came first.
The Angus Reid survey was published on Jan. 21. The results were from an online survey of 4004 Canadians. It was conducted between Nov. 29, 2024, and Dec. 5, 2024.
