MONTREAL – New polling suggests a public prayer ban is most popular among Quebecers, where 43 per cent of respondents believe organized prayers in public spaces should never be permitted.
The Leger poll surveyed Canadians across the country after the Quebec government announced it would ban prayer in public places as part of a move to strengthen secularism in the province.
Secularism Minister Jean-François Roberge said in August he would table legislation this fall to outlaw the practice.
The provincial government’s proposal comes amid simmering tension in Quebec over Muslim prayers taking place as part of pro-Palestinian demonstrations, including in front of the Notre-Dame Basilica in Montreal.
Quebec also had the lowest support for prayers being permitted all the time in the country at 12 per cent.
The online survey polled 1,592 people between Sept. 5 and Sept. 7 and can’t be assigned a margin of error.
Overall, 19 per cent of Canadians believe public prayer should always be permitted, but the plurality of respondents, 45 per cent, believe prayers should be permitted under certain specific circumstances while 26 per cent said they should never be permitted.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 9, 2025.
