The 2025 edition of the CIRANO Barometer on Risk Perception, conducted with a sample of 1,004 respondents representative of the Quebec population between August 25 and 28, 2025, highlights that economic and financial risks and risks related to the health care system remain in 2025 the two main concerns of Quebecers, both at the personal and collective levels. More specifically, while more than three quarters of Quebecers perceive major or very major risks related to issues such as food prices (78%), emergency room overcrowding (81%), and access to affordable housing (76%), this edition above all reveals low confidence in the government’s ability to manage these socio-economic issues.

Beyond these well-established findings, the 2025 CIRANO Barometer on Risk Perception points to a worrying shift in the social climate, marked by the emergence or intensification of social fractures. The proportion of Quebecers opposed to immigration has doubled since 2022, reaching 42%, and perceptions related to homelessness have reached high levels of perceived risk. These social concerns are accompanied by particularly low levels of trust in public authorities’ ability to manage them.

Conversely, some issues generate more favorable consensus, notably the exploitation of natural resources—particularly mineral resources—seen as a significant economic opportunity and a lever of sovereignty in the context of the energy transition. Indeed, 72% believe that Quebec should place greater emphasis on developing its mineral resources to support its economy. Statistical analyses clearly show that support for increased mineral resource development is driven primarily by the perception of economic benefits and, to a lesser extent, by confidence in the government’s ability to manage this issue.

Finally, the study highlights a major cross-cutting challenge: the fragility of the population’s knowledge base. Fewer than half of Quebecers feel capable of identifying misinformation, and barely one third report adequately understanding economic concepts. In a context of strong concerns and weakened institutional trust, this lack of reference points represents a major democratic challenge for the quality of public debate and the development of informed public policies.