Compas Poll / Survey

CEOs and business leaders on the COMPAS panel want rising tax income from rising gasoline prices to be devoted increasingly to infrastructure spending and also to a temporary cut in fuel taxes.

At every occasion since 2001 when a federal surplus was anticipated, panelists have been asked where the surfeit should be allocated. Debt repayment has been consistently at the top. But support for priorizing debt repayment has fallen. So too has support for military preparedness. The biggest drops in support are for health transfer payments and domestic security, both eliciting approximately one-seventh as much support as in 2001.

Support for an increase in spending on infrastructure is at an all-time high (16%), tied for second place with cutting personal taxes.

Support for a temporary cut in fuel taxes has reached 14%, up from 1% in the fall and higher than the previous high of 5% in September, 2005.

These are the key findings from this past week’s Internet survey of CEOs and business leaders on the COMPAS panel. The weekly business survey is undertaken for Canadian Business magazine under sponsorship of BDO Dunwoody LLP.