The are currently 543 Covid-19 patients in intensive care in Switzerland, a number above the peak of 527 reached during the first wave, reported to SRF based data supplied by ICU monitoring. Over the last 48 hours, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported a further 227 deaths among laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases, bringing the death […]
Covid: 198 deaths in Switzerland over weekend as infection rate slows
Over the last 72 hours, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 198 deaths among laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases, bringing the death toll to 1,427 since summer and 3,158 since the beginning of the year. At 4,000, the number of hospitalised Covid-19 patients remains high in Switzerland, based on figures published by RTS. During the first wave, this figure peaked at […]
Government resists call to use banned insecticide to save Swiss sugar beet
The use of a class of insecticides known as neonicotinoids has been restricted in Switzerland since 2018. Neonicotinoids are a class of neuro-active insecticides chemically similar to nicotine developed in the 80s and 90s. They attack the nervous system of insects causing paralysis and death. Their use has been linked to the collapse of the […]
Swiss government wants to extend GMO ban
The use of genetically modified organisms (GMO) is currently banned in Switzerland. Their use was outlawed after a majority of Swiss voters voted in favour of a moratorium on their use in 2005. This moratorium, which expires at the end of December 2021, has been extended three times since 2005. This week, the Federal Council […]
Unemployment rises in third quarter of 2020 in Switzerland
Between the 3rd quarter 2019 and the 3rd quarter 2020, the number of people employed in Switzerland fell by 0.4% (–21 000). In addition, weekly hours worked per employee decreased by 2.7%. During the same period, the unemployment rate in Switzerland as defined by the International Labour Organisation (ILO) increased from 4.6% to 5.3%. At […]
Covid: mobile data pinpoints infection hotspots
Modelling based on mobile data finds that a small minority of super spreader venues account for a large majority of infections. It also shows that restricting maximum occupancy at these places would be more effective than uniformly reducing mobility. The research, which was published this week, used anonymous mobile data covering the hourly movements of […]
The Swiss tax money transfers in 2021
Swiss cantons have very different tax bases, tax rates and costs. To even things up rich cantons are required to help those with less money via a system set up in 2008 known as the péréquation financière nationale (French) or Nationaler Finanzausgleich (German). This week, the government decided on next year’s payments. The system relies on […]
Covid: 553 deaths in Switzerland this week as infection rate slows
Over the 7 days to 13 November 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Office of Public Health (FOPH) reported 553 deaths among laboratory-confirmed Covid-19 cases, bringing the death toll to 1,229 since summer and 2,960 since the beginning of the year. The 553 reported deaths this week represent 19% of the total so far, making the last 7 days the deadliest […]
Covid: Switzerland to spend 100 million francs more on vaccines
Switzerland’s federal government has increased the amount of money earmarked for SARS-CoV-2 vaccines by CHF 100 million, bringing the total to CHF 400 million. The announcement came as preliminary trials of a vaccine developed by Pfizer and BioNTech found it to be more than 90% effective in preventing Covid-19 in participants without evidence of prior […]
Public worker absenteeism costs Geneva 285 million francs a year
Public worker absenteeism in Geneva costs at least CHF 285 million, according to Heidi.news, which calculated the sum based on information contained in an internal document. According to the news service the cost of absenteeism, which continues to rise, is equivalent to 11% of the 2.54 billion spent public sector workers’ salaries in 2019 and […]
