OTTAWA -- Canadians are just as jittery as they were right after the carnage in the United States one year ago, and more than half believe there are terrorists in this country just waiting to attack, a new poll suggests.

Of those surveyed in an Ipsos-Reid/CTV/Globe and Mail poll released yesterday, 55 per cent said they believe there are international terrorists in Canada plotting to attack civilians. That number was the same as indicated in a poll last year when the identical question was asked the week after Sept. 11.

Forty-three per cent of those surveyed this year disagreed with the statement: "I believe that there are international terrorists within Canada who are just waiting to attack Canadian civilians." That number was also unchanged from last year.

The new survey unease over the federal government's ability to protect citizens from acts of terrorism.

Fifty-five per cent of those surveyed said they are not confident that the government and its security forces can stop terrorist attacks, a decrease from 60 per cent last year. Only four in 10 (44 per cent) expressed confidence in Canada's ability to prevent terrorist attacks.

"I think there is a concern, caution, and anxiety in this country that will be present for years to come to keep the heat on the government to be vigilant," said John Wright, senior vice-president of Ipsos-Reid.

The poll suggests that nearly two-thirds of Canadians believe Ottawa has not done enough to ensure that the police have the tools to fight terrorism. That's an increase of 13 per cent since a poll last December asked the same question.

The poll showed little confidence in the federal government's ability to provide airline and airport security for travellers. More than a third of respondents, 37 per cent, said they don't think Ottawa has done enough in this regard. That's barely changed since last December.

Although Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and President George W. Bush posed yesterday at the Ambassador Bridge between Windsor, Ont., and Detroit to promote trade and heightened border security, the number of Canadians who don't think enough is being done to keep borders safe seems to be growing.

Forty-one per cent of those interviewed said "not enough" has been done to tighten border controls. That's an increase of 5 per cent since last December. But 48 per cent said enough has been done, and 8 per cent said too much has been done.

The Ipsos-Reid poll mirrors attitudes about the war on terrorism south of the border. In a New York Times/CBS News poll reported Sunday, one in four Americans interviewed -- but one in three living in the Northeast -- said they feared a terrorist attack in their area.

Most Canadians surveyed -- 61 per cent -- said the federal government has done enough to support the U.S.-led war on terrorism. Twenty-four per cent said that Canada has not done enough and 14 per cent that it has done too much to support the war.

Seventy-four per cent of Canadians agreed that the terrorist attacks are the work of a handful of radicals who oppose Western values and Christianity. But 20 per cent said the terrorist threat is due "in general" to Muslims, Arab nations, and those who follow Islam.

The poll surveyed 1,000 Canadians between Aug. 27 and Aug. 29. The results have 19 chances out of 20 of approximating accuracy on any given question within a margin of error of 3.1 per cent.