During peak times when there is a lot of traffic the maximum speed on Swiss motorways will soon be reduced to 80km/h on some stretches so that trucks and cars travel at the same speed. The lower speed limit aims to reduce traffic jams and improve flow, reported SRF. On Swiss motorways speeds of 80 […]
One Swiss canton fines those who do not vote
Despite Switzerland’s legendary levels of democracy, surprisingly few vote. At the last general election in 2019 only around 45% of voters voted. To encourage voter participation the canton of Schaffhausen fines those who don’t take the time to take part in democracy, reported SRF. Across Switzerland, since 1979, more than 49% of eligible voters have […]
Swiss still travelling less than before pandemic
In 2022, 88% of Switzerland’s population made at least one trip abroad which included an overnight stay of one night or more, reported the Federal Statistical Office (FSO) this week. Last year, Swiss residents made an average of 8 day trips and 2.6 trips with overnight stays, an increase of nearly 30% compared to the […]
Swiss inflation turns negative in September
Switzerland’s consumer price index (CPI) changed by -0.1% in September 2023 compared with the previous month, and year-on-year inflation was +1.7%, a rate below the Swiss National Bank’s (SNB) target maximum rate of 2.0%, reported Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO). The 0.1% fall compared with the previous month was due to several factors, wrote FSO. […]
The number of single-person households rising in Switzerland
At 37% of the total, one-person households are now the most common way to live in Switzerland, according to recently published data by Switzerland’s Federal Statistical Office (FSO). The data from 2022, show that 37% of households contained one person, followed by the 32% that contained two, 13% that contained three, 12% with four and […]
Switzerland’s largest pumpkin in 2023
Every year there is a competition to see who can grow the largest pumpkin. This year, 20 giant pumpkins and other oversized vegetables graced the scales at the Bächlihof in Jona, in eastern Switzerland. This year several records were broken. Matthias Leuenberger’s 2.4 kilogram aubergine and 45.8 kilogram courgette surpassed earlier records of 2.1 and […]
Immigration: Swiss population will say stop at some point
In a recent interview, Guy Parmelin, a Swiss Federal Councillor and former president, said that at some point the population will say stop, referring to immigration, reported SRF. In the interview, Parmelin, a Federal Councillor and member of the Swiss People’s Party (SVP/UDC) was unusually blunt regarding Switzerland’s politics of immigration, something his party has […]
More than 90 members of Swiss parliament defending healthcare
After the United States, Switzerland has the world’s second most costly healthcare. Cost-saving reforms put forward by the health minister over many years have yielded little. Last week, average compulsory health insurance premiums rose the most in more than a decade. This week, an investigation by the newspaper SonntagsZeitung (NZZ), revealed 90 parliamentarians working as […]
Swiss canton approves 300 franc fine for littering
Anyone littering is currently fined CHF 50 in the canton of Thurgau. A parliamentary initiative by the Swiss People’s Party (SVP/UDC), with support from the Green Party, to raise littering fines sixfold to CHF 300 (US$ 330) was approved by the canton’s parliament this week, reported SRF. One of the initiators, farmer Urs Schär, talked […]
Swiss cabinet opposed to universal childcare initiative
On 29 September 2023, Switzerland’s Federal Council announced that it was opposed to an initiative to introduce publicly financed universal childcare, reported RTS. On 26 July 2023, a green light to a vote on a proposal to provide “good affordable childcare for everyone” was given. A total of 102,238 valid signatures were confirmed, a figure […]
