At a gathering this week near Verbier, Switzerland’s ski lift operators decided that everyone, regardless of their Covid-19 immune status, would be able to ride Swiss ski lifts this coming winter. Lift operators at the meeting decided that no Covid certificate would be required to access ski lifts, reported Le Matin. The decision follows two […]
Left out of Horizon, Switzerland starts funding its own participation
This week, Switzerland’s federal council released CHF 400 million to fund Swiss research projects once part of Horizon Europe, an EU research programme that is the world’s most heavily funded. Switzerland was cut out of the programme when it unilaterally ended talks with the EU aimed at agreeing a deal with the bloc. Since being […]
Swiss government considers new Covid certificates for recovered and tourists
This week the government announced possible changes to Swiss Covid certificates aimed particularly at those who have recovered from the disease. However, given the current situation, with schools reopening after the autumn break, winter approaching, the highly contagious Delta variant and a relatively low level of immunisation, the government said it had concluded that the […]
Switzerland remains top place for expats in 2021
Switzerland is the highest rated country in the latest HSBC expat ranking published this week, a position held for the last three years. 91% of the expats surveyed living in Switzerland said their living environment was better than it was before moving. The average on this measure across all expats questioned was 67%. After moving, […]
Thousands protest against Covid measures in Switzerland
Over the weekend, several thousand people took to Swiss streets to protest against Switzerland’s measures to reduce the impact of Covid-19, reported RTS. In Lausanne, between 800 and 1,000 people marched in protest against Covid certificates and restrictions on individual liberty. No violence or property damage was reported. In Lugano, calls from an association named […]
Swiss president warns nation to prepare for electricity shortages
According to Guy Parmelin, Switzerland’s president, it is possible the country could suffer electricity shortages for weeks or even months by 2025. Switzerland faces two principal challenges when it come to electricity. The first is that it doesn’t produce enough and must import electricity to satisfy demand. During winter around 20% of Switzerland’s electricity is […]
Swiss research discovers super antibody against Covid-19
The CHUV, Lausanne’s university hospital, and EPFL, one of Switzerland’s two federal universities made an important discovery this week in the fight against the SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for Covid-19. Scientists at the two organisations have discovered a highly potent monoclonal antibody that targets the SARS-CoV-2 spike protein and is effective at neutralising all variants of […]
Covid: new cases down 10% this week in Switzerland as government plans vaccination push
This week, 6,174 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in Switzerland, down 10% from the 6,845 recorded the week before. On a 7-day moving average basis, the number of daily new cases (882) is back down to where it was in early August 2021. The number entering hospital with Covid-19 is also down. Over the last 7 days, […]
Swiss government rejects selection of judges by lottery
This week, the Federal Council launched its campaign against a vote on 28 November 2021 to move to a system where Switzerland’s judges would be selected by lottery. The proposed system would involve randomly selecting judges from a preselected pool of qualified people. Currently, Swiss judges are elected by the Federal Assembly, the combination of […]
Covid: Switzerland looks at third vaccine doses
Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) is looking at following the EU and authorising third doses of Covid-19 vaccines, reported 20 Minutes. The FOPH is also considering extending the validity of Covid-19 certificates issued to those who have recovered from the disease. This group currently gets 180 days from the date of a positive […]
