On 19 December 2020, the French government advised against French residents travelling to Switzerland to ski and introduced rules that made returning difficult, including a requirement to show a negative Covid-19 test less than 72 hours old or to quarantine on arrival. The rule covered all those entering France from the cantons of Graubünden, Jura, […]
Covid: we were too optimistic after first wave, said Swiss health minister
In a broadcast on Swiss broadcaster SRF over the weekend, Alain Berset, Switzerland’s health minister said the government was too optimistic after the first wave. “We felt the worst was over, which was an error”, said the minister. In the broadcast, Berset talked of the high level of strain he felt during the first wave. […]
Covid: UK tourists break Covid quarantine in Verbier
Shortly after the UK announced it was struggling to contain a new faster spreading variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus, the Swiss government announced a backdated 10-day quarantine requirement for UK arrivals. This affected tourists from the UK already in the winter resort of Verbier. Some media, including the BBC, reported that 420 UK tourists, some […]
Covid: first person vaccinated in Switzerland
On Wednesday, a 90-year old resident of an old age home in Luzern, Switzerland, was vaccinated against Covid-19. She was the first person to be vaccinated against the disease in Switzerland. Older vulnerable people in four other Swiss cantons have been vaccinated since. 107,000 doses of the Pfizer/Biontech vaccine arrived in Switzerland on Tuesday and […]
Flights resume between UK and Switzerland with restrictions
From Thursday 24 December 2020, residents of the UK and South Africa currently in Switzerland are allowed to fly home from Switzerland. Those currently in either of these two countries who reside in Switzerland will also be able to fly home, announced Switzerland’s Federal Office of Civil Aviation (FOCA). Flights between Switzerland and these two […]
Covid: restaurants and cafés to close across French-speaking Switzerland
Restaurants and cafés will progressively close once more across French-speaking Switzerland starting in the canton of Jura on Tuesday 22 December 2020. On 18 December 2020, Switzerland’s Federal Council decided to close restaurants, bars, cultural venues and sports and leisure facilities from 22 December 2020. However, exceptions were allowed in cantons with R-numbers (reproduction rates) […]
Covid: retroactive quarantine for those arriving from the UK and South Africa
Following the discovery of a new, more contagious variant of the coronavirus in the UK and South Africa, the Federal Council today decided to take steps to prevent the further spread of this new variant. On Sunday, 20 December 2020, all flights to and from these countries to Switzerland were halted from midnight. Today, the […]
Covid: Switzerland suspends flights from the UK and South Africa
Late on 20 December 2020, the Swiss government decided to suspend flights to Switzerland from the UK and South Africa following news of the discovery a new variant of SARS-CoV-2 virus. The decision by the Swiss government follows similar decisions by Germany, France, Italy, Ireland, Belgium and the Netherland. Air, road, rail and maritime links […]
Covid: Switzerland approves first vaccine
On 19 December 2020, Swissmedic, Switzerland’s drug authorising agency, approved the first Covid-19 vaccination for the Swiss market. The agency approved the Covid-19 vaccine from Pfizer/BioNTech for adults from age 16. The first doses of vaccine will be delivered to Switzerland in the next few days. The first delivery will comprise 100,000 doses, followed by […]
Coop Karma and Migros Farmer products recalled – do not eat these
The two products sold in Coop in the photograph below have been recalled. The Federal Food Safety and Veterinary Office (FSVO) warns that they contain high levels of ethylene oxide and should not be consumed. FSVO recommends these products not be consumed and said that health risks from eating them cannot be excluded – warning […]
