OTTAWA - Most Canadians think Stephane Dion is weak, uninspiring and unintelligible, a new poll suggests.

But, for all his flaws, they still find the Liberal leader more likable than Prime Minister Stephen Harper. The Canadian Press-Harris-Decima survey explores why Dion's Liberals have not been able to capitalize on lingering reservations about Harper's Conservatives. The Liberals and Conservatives have been locked in a virtual tie in public support for months, with neither within range of the support needed to win a majority.

The poll tested a series of commonly cited hypotheses for the Dion's failure to pull ahead of the Tories.

The findings suggest that Dion's biggest problem is his inability to communicate. Fifty-eight per cent of respondents said he seems to have trouble communicating effectively. That was the consensus across all regional, gender and party lines, even among those who identified themselves as Liberals.

Fifty-three per cent said Dion seems like a weak leader. And an equal percentage said he doesn't seem to offer much optimism or inspiration or any better ideas for the future.

On the up side, Dion was marginally more inspiring than Harper, who was deemed uninspiring by 55 per cent in a Harris-Decima survey last week.

And respondents found Dion more likable than the prime minister.

Forty-seven per cent of respondents agreed with the statement that "there's something about Stephane Dion that I just don't like." That feeling was most pronounced in Quebec (52 per cent) but even 43 per cent of those who voted Liberal in the last election agreed.

While his likeability rating isn't exactly encouraging, it's better than the 55 per cent who last week said there's something about Harper they don't like.

Moreover, the poll suggests Dion's party is more in tune with the issues that move Canadians. Forty per cent agreed with the statement that "the Liberals don't care all that much about the issues I care deeply about."

By contrast, 53 per cent said the same about the Conservatives last week.

Harris-Decima president Bruce Anderson said the findings explain why neither the Liberals nor the Conservatives have been able to pull into a commanding lead in public support.

"You've got these kind of duelling weaknesses," he said.

While the Tories appear to have successfully painted Dion as a weak leader, Anderson said Harper is seen as being too much of an "aggressive partisan" and less in touch with mainstream Canadian views on things like the environment and foreign affairs.

"Those are the reasons why the Conservatives seem to keep hitting a ceiling," he said. "That ceiling represents an indication of real opportunity for the Liberals."

Anderson said Dion's single most important priority should be to improve his communication skills. He's been criticized for his inability to express himself clearly in either official language.

"All other things being equal, campaigns become about effective communication. The best ideas, if people aren't getting a clear sense of them, if they're not getting motivated and impassioned by the way in which they're presented, may not succeed ultimately."

The survey also found 43 per cent of respondents still don't trust the Liberal party in the wake of the sponsorship scandal. And 34 per cent believe the Liberals would do more harm than good to the economy.

The telephone poll of just over 1,000 Canadians was conducted May 1-4 and is considered accurate to within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times in 20.

LIKE IT?  LET OTHERS KNOW

Thanks for participating!

1 person recommended this article

See what other people are recommending - Popular Stories

FIRST RECOMMENDED BY

Change your Name/Photo display

Dagger
1 week ago

Conrad C
1 week ago