A new poll conducted by Abacus Data in the days after BC United/Liberals leader Kevin Falcon promised to cut the provincial income tax for 60% of British Columbians has found that the move failed to immediately attract voters.Instead of seeing a jump in support following the announcement, the official opposition continued its downward trend.According to the poll, 10% of respondents said they would vote for BC United/Liberals, down 3% since the survey was last conducted in May. The BC Conservatives and BC NDP, on the other hand, saw increases of 3% and 2%, respectively, sitting at 37% and 42%.Respondents were asked between August 14-16 whether they were aware of Falcon's proposal, which was announced on August 13. Just 43% said they had heard about the plan, while 57% said they had not. Awareness among BC United/Liberals supporters was slightly higher, at 53%.A majority of respondents, 60%, said they believed the tax cuts were a "good idea," with at least half of every party's supporters seeing them in a positive light. Nearly one in four said they were a "bad idea," with negative responses reported among 36% of NDP supporters. A majority of respondents, 51%, said they believed it would not be possible to implement the tax proposal "without cutting services or raising new revenue."Of those who knew about the tax cuts, only 11% said they would vote for BC United/Liberals, though 26% admitted that the proposal made them "more likely" to support the party. Impressions of Falcon himself were less favourable, with just 16% of respondents saying they had a "positive" view of the leader, a 15 point drop since May."Mr. Falcon's bold pledge to cut provincial income taxes has yet to change minds about him or a willingness to vote for his party," Abacus Data founder and CEO David Coletto said. "In May, 36% of British Columbians said they were open to voting BC United. Today, that number is largely unchanged at 35%. So far, this so-called 'Hail Mary' play has yet to bear any political fruit for official opposition leader."The plan, which is predicted to cost $5.4 billion per year, would involve raising the Basic Personal Exemption to $50,000. An estimated 2.4 million British Columbians would see their income tax reduced to zero.
