Ottawa’s top science office quietly spent more than $34,000 on a nationwide UFO survey that no MP requested, even as the federal cabinet publicly vowed to rein in unnecessary spending.Internal Access To Information records show staff in Chief Science Advisor Mona Nemer’s office scrambling to craft a rationale for the project, asking for “justification for why the survey is needed” despite no parliamentary demand for it. According to Blacklock's Reporter, the memo framed the work as part of an effort to curb disinformation by making government‑collected material more accessible.Staff also pushed to tie the project to broader public‑opinion research goals, noting the office planned to release a report later. They asked for explanations of how the polling would support the science advisor, the government, and Canadians.Nemer ultimately spent $34,369 on the poll, hiring Earnscliffe Strategy Group to gauge public attitudes toward UFOs. Records confirm the initiative originated entirely within her office.The results suggested Canadians saw little value in federal spending on UFO investigations. Pollsters reported that support for public spending on unidentified aerial phenomenon research was weak, with only 1 in 10 respondents calling it “very important” to dedicate funds to such work.Of the 1,008 Canadians surveyed, 27% said they had seen something in the sky they couldn’t identify, though only 1 in 10 of those witnesses ever reported it. Sightings were most common in British Columbia at 32%, followed by Ontario at 29%, Saskatchewan and Manitoba at 25%, Quebec at 24%, and both Alberta and Atlantic Canada at 21%. Many respondents said they didn’t report sightings because they weren’t confident in what they saw.Nationally, the report found only a “limited degree of real alarm” about UFOs. When asked what they believed caused unidentified aerial phenomena, 10% pointed to aliens, while others cited the weather (5%), foreign governments (4%), drones, satellites or weather balloons (4%), their own government (3%), or the military (3%).Just 10% strongly agreed that UFOs pose a flight‑safety issue in Canada.
