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 […]
Terror attack in Vienna linked to Winterthur
Following the terrorist attack in Vienna this week, Swiss and Austrian authorities have been in contact following the arrest of two Swiss in Winterthur, a hotbed of radicalisation in Switzerland, according to RTS. Intelligence services, police and judicial authorities from both nations have been working together to look at the case. The An’ Nur mosque […]
Swiss government rejects call to abolish the crime of blasphemy
Last week, Switzerland’s parliament rejected by 115 votes to 48 a proposal to abolish the crime of blasphemy in Switzerland. Beat Flach proposed the motion, arguing that defining blasphemy as a crime places limits on free speech. We should not punish people for criticising religion, believes Flach. Instead he thinks Switzerland should send a strong […]
Covid sceptics taking up more and more Swiss police time
Some Covid sceptics and those energetically opposed to measures to stop the spread of the SARS-CoV-2 virus are consuming an increasing amount of police time, in particular the time of staff at Switzerland’s Federal Office of Police (Fedpol), reported RTS. The rising propensity for violence associated with Covid sceptics is taking up a lot of […]
Initiative against Swiss Covid app fails
In July 2020, a group started gathering signatures to launch a public vote to ban Switzerland’s Covid-19 contact tracing app. To launch a referendum in Switzerland organisers must collect 50,000 signatures from eligible voters within 100 days. Organisers of the “Stop Swiss Covid” initiative had until 8 October 2020 to collect 50,000 signatures. According to […]
Swiss politician hopes to ban dual citizens from running for parliament
Andreas Glarner, a member of the Swiss People’s Party (SVP/UDC) told the SonntagsZeitung that members of parliament with dual nationality “do not represent Switzerland’s best interests”. In an interview, Glarner said he is submitting a parliamentary proposal to ban dual citizens from running for the National Council, Switzerland’s parliament, and the Council of States, Switzerland’s […]
Swiss would pay more for food to cut waste, according to study
After surveying 3,229 people, political science researchers at ETH in Zurich discovered that a majority would pay more for food if it would cut food waste. Switzerland’s population is well aware that food waste is a problem. The vast majority of those surveyed regard food waste as a moral, economic and environmental problem. Most accurately […]
Referendum: whether to make it easier to hunt wolves
Switzerland has laws to protect wild animals. The current rules were introduced in 1986 when there were no wolves. In 1995, wolves started to return to Switzerland. By 2019, there were 80 wolves living in Switzerland and in some places packs have formed. Wolves have attacked sheep and goats and been seen near villages, something […]
Referendum: Swiss to vote on ending EU agreement
On 27 September 2020, Swiss voters have many decisions to make. This time the list of votes includes decisions on fighter jets, hunting, tax deductions for child care and paternity leave. Probably the most important among them is a decision on whether to accept a proposal to end the EU agreement on the free movement […]
Switzerland’s Christian Catholic church votes in favour of same sex marriage
Over the weekend, the Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland voted in favour of same sex marriage at a national synod in Zurich, according to RTS. The Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland is part of an offshoot of Catholicism that rejects papal infallibility. The church has around 12,000 adherents mainly in Basel, Aargau, Solothun, Zurich, Bern, […]
