Last weekend, the PLR/FDP unveiled a plan to create a budget low cost health insurance option in Switzerland, reported RTS. The proposal, which includes lower cost ways of delivering healthcare, will be presented to parliament next month. Examples of ways to lower costs include limiting the choice of hospital and sharing hospital rooms with more […]
Switzerland needs to be able to recharge 2.8 million vehicles
This week, the Swiss Federal Office of Energy (SFOE) published its predictions and ambitions for electric transport infrastructure. By 2035, SFOE expects more than half of all passenger cars in Switzerland to be electric. This means the country has around 12 years to complete its charging infrastructure, it said. The SFOE study estimates there will […]
One day off work costs Switzerland 350 million francs
Last week, Switzerland’s federal parliament voted in favour of adding an annual public holiday to celebrate democracy. This week, the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs (SECO), said the extra day off would cost the economy CHF 350 million, reported RTS. The CHF 350 million sum was calculated by comparing the GDP in years when Christmas […]
One Swiss canton wants to make it harder to become Swiss
This week, the government of the canton of Aargau was poised to make it harder to become Swiss in the canton, reported RTS. The canton’s parliament voted in favour of increasing the language requirements and applying stricter judicial restrictions. Becoming a citizen in Switzerland is already difficult by international standards. Rules set at a federal […]
Switzerland’s cantons make bigger than expected profits in 2022
In 2022, together, Switzerland’s cantons were expected to spend CHF 1.1 billion more than they brought in from taxes. Instead, they made a collective profit of CHF 3.5 billion, a positive delta of CHF 4.6 billion, reported RTS. Switzerland collects tax at three levels: municipal, cantonal and federal. Cantonal taxes are typically the largest slice. […]
Federal Council axes November 2023 voting
In Switzerland, citizens 18 and over are typically called to vote on a number of referenda four times a year. However, in 2023, the fourth scheduled date on 26 November 2023 was axed by the Federal Council this week, reported RTS. The referendum vote date was cancelled because it clashes with Switzerland’s four-yearly federal election, […]
Federal Council supports plan to widen Switzerland’s main motorway
The week, the Federal Council, Switzerland’s executive. decided the A1, the nation’s longest motorway should be at least three lanes in both directions along its entire length, reported RTS. The Federal Council’s decision was in response to a proposal by Erich Hess, a parliamentarian from the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP). The motion was signed by […]
Swiss parliament votes for tough new banking rules
Many Swiss politicians and members of the public remain angry about the recent rushed government deal to head off the potential collapse of Credit Suisse. This week a majority of the National Council, Switzerland’s federal parliament, voted in favour of measures to reduce the risk systemic big banks pose to taxpayers, reported RTS. Spearheaded by […]
Opioid use almost doubles in Switzerland
Between 2008 and 2018, prescriptions for opioid painkillers almost doubled in Switzerland, reported RTS this week. Opioid prescriptions for minor injuries rose by 88.3% and those for serious injuries by 91.4% over the decade, according to a study run by Baden hospital. The study shows how the drugs are often prescribed for mild pain. According […]
1 in 20 suffer material deprivation in Switzerland
On 2 May 2023, Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office published its annual report on income, poverty and living conditions. In 2021, 448,000 people, 5.2% of the population, refrained from buying goods, services and social activities for financial reasons, something described as material and social deprivation. And Switzerland’s poverty rate was 8.7%. At the same time, the […]
