Canadians' Attitudes Toward the Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) and Sustainable Development

Prepared for the
Canada Revenue Agency
Contract# 46558-078740/001/CY
POR 290-06
January 2007

Prepared by:
Environics Research Group

Le rapport complet en français sera fourni sur demande.

To request a full copy of this report, please contact Library and Archives Canada at:
613-996-5115 or 1-866-578-7777 or www.collectionscanada.ca

Media Enquiries:
Media Relations
Canada Revenue Agency
4th Floor 555 MacKenzie Avenue
Ottawa ON K1A 0L5
media.relations@cra-arc.gc.ca

Executive Summary

There is little consensus among Canadians about what "sustainable development" means. Many indicate either that it is development designed for the long term, or development that has some positive (or at least neutral) connection to the environment. That a significant proportion (three in ten) do not give any response when asked about their understanding of the term indicates there is a lack of understanding of, or perhaps a lack of engagement with, the concept of SD, despite a high level of interest in environmental issues in general.

As few seem to have a clear understanding of what constitutes sustainable development, it is not surprising that Canadians by and large do not voice strong views about the CRA's activities or initiatives in this area. About half agree to some extent that the CRA is committed to sustainable development and that it does a good job of using technology to deliver environmentally-responsible services, but less than two in ten agree strongly with either of these statements. However, it is important to note that half of Canadians agree strongly that the CRA should do more to inform Canadians about its sustainable development initiatives, indicating a definite interest in learning more about this issue.

Further research is recommended to assess more fully the extent to which Canadians really understand what sustainable development means in a government agency context, what level of commitment they expect, and how the CRA in particular can improve Canadians' awareness of its SD initiatives.

Date modified:

2007-03-01