Update: It appears rail connections between Italy and Switzerland will not be interrupted after Switzerland’s president and the Italian minister of transport spoke on Wednesday. Solutions have been identified to ensure compliance with Italy’s anti-COVID measures. Rail links are expected to gradually return to normal over the next few days, according to a report by […]
Covid: Bern to consider new measures as cases rise again
On 8 December 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Council announced it was considering further restrictions starting from 12 December 2020 and running until 20 January 2021. The Federal Council announced that it plans to harmonise and reinforce measures recently introduced by the cantons. It will meet on 11 December 2020 and again on 18 December 2020 to […]
Swiss upper house votes in favour of gay marriage
On 18 December 2020, The Council of States, Switzerland’s upper house, voted in favour of allowing gay marriage in Switzerland. 27 members voted for the plan, 15 against and 7 abstained. The result follows a successful parliamentary vote on the subject and is the culmination of a 7-year campaign to achieve full marriage rights for […]
Covid: cantons asked to do more after another deadly week in Switzerland
Today, Switzerland’s Federal Council called on cantons with increasing case numbers to take immediate action. It described the epidemiological situation as extremely serious. This week the Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 598 Covid-19 deaths, 11% fewer than last week (675), but a figure that remains tragically high. Switzerland’s Covid-19 death toll has now […]
Covid: new restrictions for shops, restaurants and ski resorts
Today, Switzerland’s Federal Council announced new restrictions for shops, restaurants and ski resorts applicable from 9 December 2020. New daily cases remain stubbornly high at around 4,000 a day in Switzerland with an overall 14-day case rate of 595 per 100,000. Over summer, Switzerland’s trigger rate for requiring travellers entering Switzerland to quarantine was 60 […]
Initiative launched to prevent compulsory vaccination in Switzerland
Switzerland’s government has repeatedly said that vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus will not be compulsory. However, a group called the Movement for Swiss Freedom (MLS) started collecting signatures this week for a referendum on the subject, according to RTS. The initiative’s organisers want everyone to be able to decide whether or not they they want […]
No relief for Swiss renters
Every three months the benchmark interest rate used to set Swiss rents is reviewed. If it goes down some renters can request a decrease in rent. This time it remained at 1.25%. The last time it dropped was March 2020 when it fell from 1.5% to 1.25%, its lowest level since the measure began in […]
New study reveals hidden long-term damage from Covid-19
A recent study at the University of Sheffield in the UK has detected previously unseen lung damage in long-term Covid-19 patients using a new scanning technique. The technique, which involves hyperpolarised xenon gas and MRI scanning to allow imaging of oxygen uptake in the lungs, has identified weakened lung function in Covid-19 patients not visible […]
Covid: daily cases down but level “not very reassuring”
On 1 December 2020, Switzerland reported 3,802 new cases of Covid-19 over 24 hours. The figure follows a daily average of around 2,900 over the weekend. The lower case figure represents progress in reducing the spread of the virus. 3,802 daily new cases is less than half the 7-day average peak of 8,238 reached on […]
Swiss voters reject ban on financing weapons
Today, Swiss voters voted on whether to make it illegal to finance any form of weapons production or invest in any company making weapons. With 57.45% of voters opposed to the ban and 42.55% in favour of it, the margin was convincing. Polls just before the vote suggested only 41% would vote in favour of the plan. […]
