British Columbians have felt a "palpable animosity" for the way the harmonized sales tax was explained to them by the government, much more so than Ontarians, according to an online survey comparing the opinions of residents in both provinces about the tax.

An Angus Reid Strategies online survey of more than 800 residents in both provinces found that the majority of residents say the HST has negatively affected their finances, but that B.C. residents had much a much stronger dislike for the way their government introduced the tax.

Both provincial governments were given low marks for the way they explained the decision to implement the HST, a move that saw a tax burden shift from businesses to individual consumers starting July 1.

In Ontario, only 12 per cent said the government did a good job, with 81 per cent saying it performed badly (36 per cent) or very badly (45 per cent).

But that number pales in comparison to the level of animosity felt by British Columbians.

A mere three per cent said the B.C. government did a good job. Eighteen per cent said the effort was handled badly, but a whopping 75 per cent said it did a very bad job.

"The reality is that there's a lot of dissatisfaction in Ontario, but it's not as deep as in B.C." Angus Reid's Mario Canseco told ctvbc.ca.

Feeling the pinch

The online survey found that the majority of Ontario residents says the HST has negatively affected their finances, but B.C. residents are feeling the pinch more than people back east.

Three in 10 British Columbians reported being "severely impacted" by the new tax, versus one in four Ontarians. Less than one in 10 respondents in both provinces said the tax hasn't affected their pocketbooks.

That wasn't what the two governments predicted, according to Canseco.

"The idea was that you weren't going to feel the effect of the HST, because people would lower their prices," he said.

"People don't believe that that is going to happen. In fact, they expect retailers to rack up their prices."

Sixty-eight per cent of B.C. respondents said the tax moderately or severely affected their household finances. In Ontario, this number only dropped one per cent.

The power of purchase

While respondents in Ontario reported an increase in what they pay for gasoline and electricity, costs that didn't change under the HST rules here, British Columbians say that basic groceries become more expensive (76 per cent), along with cell phone bills (63 per cent) and adult clothing (61 per cent).

However, none of those products have seen their applicable tax change with the new HST.

Canseco said that British Columbians are particularly upset about paying the HST on restaurant meals -- 89 per cent believe dining out has become more expensive. In this case, the HST has increased the tax at restaurants.

"Looking at the HST when you get the receipt in the restaurant is really putting people off," Canseco said.

Less than a quarter of respondents in both provinces said they are buying much less than they used to since the HST came into effect, with 22 per cent in Ontario and 29 per cent in B.C.

Forty-two per cent of Ontarians say the HST hasn't impacted their purchasing power so far – only 28 per cent of British Columbians felt the same way.

Tumbling popularity

The poll comes just one day after documents surfaced showing that the B.C. government was already in discussions to implement the tax five months before last year's election.

Premier Gordon Campbell has always maintained the controversial tax was "off his radar" before the election.

Canseco said it will be very difficult for the Liberals to recover from any drop in popularity caused by the news -- something the pollsters will be monitoring closely in coming weeks.

"You can recover from a lot of policy problems, but when there is a credibility gap, that's when things get really hairy," Canseco said.

"There's always a chance to recover, but I think it will be difficult if they do it with Gordon Campbell."

A study released by Angus Reid Public Opinion released two weeks after the HST was introduced found that the BC Liberals' popularity had plummeted since the tax came into effect.

The poll found that 76 per cent of respondents are against the controversial new tax, and that 75 per cent would vote to abolish the tax if there were a referendum.

Angus Reid Public Opinion claims a margin of error of plus or minus 3.5 per cent.