Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/1053035
10 maltatoday | SUNDAY • 18 NOVEMBER 2018 MALTATODAY SURVEY Support for Gozo-Malta tunnel in all regions KURT SANSONE SUPPORT for a Gozo-Malta tunnel cuts across all age groups and all re- gions, according to the latest polling data. A MaltaToday survey has found that 63.1% of people agree with the con- struction of a Gozo-Malta tunnel, with opposition running at 24.4%. And it is not just Gozitans who are in favour of a tunnel link between both islands. The survey found that support for a tunnel runs at 60% and higher, across all regions in Malta. The construction of a road tunnel be- tween Gozo and Malta was an electoral pledge and geological studies were completed last summer. The tunnel is expected to be 13km long with exit and entry points at Na- dur in Gozo and Imbordin on the Mal- ta side. The proposed tunnel will be some 50 metres below the seabed and further studies are underway as part of the en- vironmental impact assessment. While 66% of Gozitans agree with a tunnel, opposition to the idea runs at a lowly 9.5%. However, Gozitans are also the most uncertain about the pro- ject with 24.5% unsure whether they agree or not with a tunnel connection to Malta. The strongest support for a tunnel is in the South Eastern region where 69% agree with the project, followed by the Southern Harbour region (65.6%). The strongest opposition to the tun- nel is found in the Northern Harbour region, where 29.7% of people disagree. But even here, agreement with the pro- ject runs at 60.3%. This broad support is also reflected across all age groups. Agreement is highest among those aged between 51 and 65 (67.1%) and lowest among the elderly (56.3%). Support for the construction of a tun- nel is also forthcoming from those aged between 18 and 35 (61.5%). Even though an absolute majority of women are in favour of a tunnel (59%), men are stronger supporters of the project (66.6%). Support for the tunnel is very strong among 2017 Labour Party voters with 74.7% agreeing with the project. Support drops among Nationalist Party voters with 48.8% agreeing with the tunnel and 37.9% giving the project the thumbs down. PEOPLE appear to be listening to government's pitch that Malta is 'the Blockchain island' despite only a quarter claiming to know what it is. A MaltaToday survey that asked whether people heard of Blockchain, found that 59.1% did hear about the technology. Men appear to be more attuned with 66.9% admitting to have heard about Blockchain as opposed to women who are split right down the middle. Blockchain resonated most with those aged between 36 and 50 with 70.7% saying they heard about the technology, followed by the young (61.9%). As expected, Blockchain was less known among the elderly, however, even in this cohort there were a cred- itable 42.3% who heard about the technology. Blockchain was increasingly a more familiar term among those with a higher education attainment level. Among those with a tertiary level of education, 83.3% had heard about Blockchain, as opposed to those with a primary level of education where only 36.4% heard about Blockchain. Gozo came out on top as the region with the highest response for people who heard about Blockchain (69.7%). But the survey found an expected split between having heard about Blockchain, and actually knowing what it was. From the 59.1% who heard about Blockchain, 44.2% answered yes when asked whether they knew what Blockchain was. This is equivalent to around 26% of the whole population, who actually know, or claim to know, what Block- chain technology is. Once again, the university educated were those who exhibited the highest knowledge on Blockchain. The survey was conducted a few days after Malta hosted a two-day Blockchain summit, which meant that the terminology was used quite often in the media and by politicians. Earlier this year government passed legislation to regulate distributed leger technology, otherwise known as Blockchain. Blockchain is a technological pro- cess that allows for a more account- able and transparent manner by which information can be stored and accessed. METHODOLOGY The survey was carried out between Monday 5 and Thursday 8 Novem- ber. 597 respondents opted to com- plete the survey. Stratified random sampling based on gender, region and age was used to replicate the Maltese demographics. The estimated margin of error is 4.2% for a confidence inter- val of 95%. Support for the tunnel is very strong among 2017 Labour Party voters with 74.7% agreeing with the project. Support drops among Nationalist Party voters with 48.8% 'Blockchain island'.... but only a quarter know what it is We polled people on whether they had heard about Blockchain, and whether they know what it is