OTTAWA -- New polling by Nanos Research has found a strong majority of Canadians are in favour of travellers being required to show proof of vaccination prior to domestic travel or to attend a large group gathering.

According to the survey, commissioned by CTV News, 74 per cent of respondents say they either “support” or “somewhat support” it being “mandatory to produce a proof of vaccination for anyone travelling between regions in Canada or attending a large gathering like a concert or sporting event.”

Twenty-four per cent either “oppose” or “somewhat oppose” it, and two per cent remain “unsure.”

The results come as the federal government works with its international counterparts to put in place steps to resume international travel.

Transport Minister Omar Alghabra discussed this virtually with G7 members on Wednesday. The group committed to establishing a “common set of principles” to guide the process, which will require collaboration not only with other countries but with international bodies, including the International Civil Aviation Organization and the World Health Organization.

"At the centre of this effort must be a coordinated approach for testing and a common platform for recognizing the vaccinated status of travellers. As we work to build back better, the establishment of a system that will protect our privacy and personal information, and that will be accessible, fair, and equitable is imperative. We must apply lessons learned from innovative technologies to identify long-term, sustainable solutions and expand upon them globally,” he said.

Tourism Minister Melanie Joly spoke with her G20 colleagues on Tuesday about how best to replenish a sector that’s been ravaged over the last year.

“We want to do things the right way to make sure that Canadians will be able to travel eventually but not only that, that also our tourism operators and tourism small businesses, that have suffered so much since the beginning of the pandemic and economic crisis, will be confident that tourists from around the world can come here in a safe way and their revenues will be going up,” said Joly on CTV News Channel on Wednesday.

The Biden administration has indicated its government won’t be mandating vaccine certification for Americans but it encouraged private businesses to go about it in the way they see fit.

"The government is not now, nor will be, supporting a system that requires Americans to carry a credential. There will be no federal vaccinations database and no federal mandate requiring everyone to obtain a single vaccination credential," Press Secretary Jen Psaki said in early April.

Israel has already implemented a vaccine “green pass” for those fully immunized, Norway announced it would be introducing vaccine certificates as early as June, and the European Union is aiming for summer. The U.K. government is also considering a temporary vaccine status approach with neighbouring countries.

METHODOLOGY:

Nanos conducted an RDD dual frame (land-and cell-lines) hybrid telephone and online random survey of 1,025 Canadians, 18 years of age or older, between April 29th and May 3rd, 2021 as part of an omnibus survey. Participants were randomly recruited by telephone using live agents and administered a survey online. The results were statistically checked and weighted by age and gender using the latest Census information and the sample is geographically stratified to be representative of Canada.

Individuals were randomly called using random digit dialing with a maximum of five call backs.

The margin of error for a random survey of 1,025 Canadians is ±3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

The research was commissioned by CTV News and conducted by Nanos Research.