Christian Petit, the head of Romande Energie told RTS that the company is not responsible for impeding hikes in the price of electricity. The largest electricity provider in French-speaking Switzerland plans to raise electricity prices further in 2024 after roughly doubling prices in 2023. However, its boss argues the electricity company is not to blame […]
Government discusses creating a 27th canton for Swiss abroad
Around 800,000 Swiss citizens live outside Switzerland, and around a quarter of them report wanting to play an active part in Switzerland’s politics, according to an organisation representing Swiss abroad. Given this high number, some of Switzerland’s political parties advocate creating a political entity equivalent to a 27th canton to better represent this group. Switzerland’s […]
Enough signatures collected for vote on Swiss radio and TV licence
On 10 August 2023, the organisers of an initiative aimed at reducing the price of Switzerland’s radio and television licence submitted 128,000 signatures to the Federal Chancellery for validation. 100,000 is the minimum number of signatures required to hold a popular vote at the federal level in Switzerland. The initiative follows a failed referendum to […]
The high cost of protecting Swiss farmers
Swiss farmers are heavily supported by taxpayers. In addition to higher taxes, Swiss consumers must also dig deep to cover the import tariffs built into some food prices. Tariffs on meat are well known. But they are also significant on some vegetables, reports SRF. During Switzerland’s cherry tomato harvest season, which runs from May to […]
Demand for Emmental cheese falls sharply
In 2012, Switzerland produced close to 27,000 tons of Emmental, its famous holey cheese. By 2022, production had fallen to below 15,000 tons, a fall of around 45%, according to reports from the industry association representing the brand. The force behind lower production is lower demand. The cheese is coming under increasing pressure on the […]
Fury at UBS ending government guarantee for Credit Suisse deal
On 11 August 2023, UBS announced it had ended the contract it had with Switzerland’s federal government that guaranteed CHF 9 billion of potential losses. The contract also required the Swiss National Bank (SNB) to provide liquidity assistance loans of up to CHF 100 billion. All loans from the SNB have now been repaid. The […]
Small amounts of drugs will no longer be confiscated, rules Swiss court
A recent decision by the Federal Tribunal, Switzerland’s highest court, opens the way for the police to allow drug users caught with small amounts of banned drugs to keep them, reported SRF. The federal court decision, which relates to cannabis possession, is likely to be applied to other drugs such as cocaine, according to legal […]
Pressure from the USA on Switzerland over Russia increases
Thomas Borer, a former US ambassador warns against Switzerland underestimating the current criticism from the United States on its economic relations with Russia, reports SRF. Last week, the US Helsinki Commission harshly criticised Switzerland and demanded that three Swiss people – including former federal prosecutor Michael Lauber – be put on a sanctions list in […]
Swiss central bank suffers large 2nd-quarter loss
On 31 July 2023, the Swiss National Bank (SNB) announced it had made a loss of CHF 13.2 billion during the second quarter of 2023. This takes the bank’s net equity down to CHF 79 billion and pushes the reserves used to make distributions to the cantons deeper into negative territory – at 30 June […]
Switzerland has a problem with foreigners, according to nation’s largest party
This week, the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP) reiterated its position on immigration at a press conference ahead of Switzerland’s upcoming federal election, reported RTS. The party, Switzerland’s largest, also set out its stance on immigration on its website. According to party president Marco Chiesa, mass immigration and asylum chaos are Switzerland’s greatest problems. Too many […]
