TORONTO — A majority of Ontarians say they want greater transparency from their provincial government, according to a new survey that also shows a closely contested political race.The poll, conducted by Liaison Strategies in late March, suggests public opinion is increasingly focused on access to information in areas such as healthcare, education, and government records.Seventy % of respondents said the province should continue publicly reporting hallway healthcare statistics, even after Ontario Health moved to stop releasing the data in favour of internal monitoring. Only 15% said internal tracking alone is sufficient.Opposition to recent changes to Freedom of Information (FOI) rules was also widespread. The survey found 65% of Ontarians oppose legislation that retroactively exempts the offices of the premier and cabinet ministers from FOI requests, including 47% who strongly oppose the move.Concerns about transparency appear to extend beyond access to records. According to the poll, 71% of respondents said they are worried that reduced public reporting requirements could lead officials to store sensitive government data on unsecured personal devices..In education, respondents expressed strong support for more detailed reporting on class sizes. The survey found 78% want some form of individual classroom size data made public. Of those, 54% support reporting both individual classroom sizes and board-wide averages, while 24% prefer only individual figures. Just 10% said board-wide averages alone are sufficient.Liaison Strategies principal David Valentin said the results point to a consistent demand for accountability across multiple policy areas.“The data shows a clear message from Ontarians: they want more accountability, not less,” Valentin said. “Whether it's healthcare statistics, class sizes, or ministerial records, there is a strong consensus across the province that public reporting must be maintained.”The survey also measured voter intention, finding the Progressive Conservatives at 39%, followed by the Ontario Liberals at 36%, the NDP at 18%, and the Greens at 5%.Valentin said the governing party remains ahead but noted the race has narrowed in recent months, with changes falling within the poll’s margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points.The poll surveyed 1,000 Ontarians between March 27 and 29 using interactive voice recording and random digit dialing across landline and cellular networks.
