Across the world, the Covid pandemic and responses to it quickly became political and gave birth to new political movements. Politics in Switzerland followed the same path with new anti-system movements emerging from the disruption felt by the population. However, recent elections in Switzerland show little support for these political movements born from pandemic discontent. […]
Swiss in favour of new fighter jets but not higher military spending
Despite the war in Ukraine, a recent poll run by Tamedia suggests that an increase in Swiss military spending is not supported by a majority of voters, reported RTS. The poll showed that only 45% would support an increase in military spending, while 41% think it is sufficiently funded and 8% think Switzerland’s military budget […]
Swiss neutrality: 5 things you ought to know
What exactly is Swiss neutrality? This article offers a brief history and summary of the laws, norms and characteristics of Swiss neutrality. How is Swiss neutrality defined? Broadly, it is defined in international laws (part V of The Hague Convention), which Switzerland has ratified, and by Switzerland itself based on its own internal policies. What […]
Switzerland’s army could be beaten in a few days, says expert
According to a military strategy expert at Zurich University Switzerland’s army is “archaic”, reported 20 Minutes. Speaking to the SonntagsZeitung, Albert Stahel, a professor of military strategy, said that faced with an attack like the one in Ukraine Switzerland would only be able to resist for a few days. The Swiss military would have no […]
Compulsory Swiss military service: reform options include women
This week, against the backdrop of war in Ukraine, Switzerland’s federal government set out a number of options for the reform of Switzerland’s military service. By 2024, the government aims to have a reform plan, which might extend compulsory service to women. Work on the project began long before the war in Ukraine. A key […]
More women at head of large Swiss companies
The percentage of women in senior management positions at companies listed on the Swiss SMI and SMIM indexes rose from 13% in 2020 to 19% in 2021. The rise reflects an increase in the number of women being nominated for these positions in 2021. During the year 4 out of 10 nominees were women, according […]
Swiss to vote on compulsory vaccination
A referendum aimed at preventing the Swiss government from introducing compulsory vaccinations has collected more than the required 100,000 signatures to put the question to Swiss voters. In addition, the signatures have been verified by the authorities, according to 20 Minutes. Vote organisers announced the collection of around 125,000 signatures. After official counting and verification […]
Switzerland remains in top 10 for lowest corruption
Switzerland was ranked tenth in the latest 2021 Corruption Perception Index (CPI) published by Transparency International this week. The index ranks 180 countries and territories around the world by their perceived levels of public sector corruption, with results ranging from 0 (highly corrupt) to 100 (very clean). This year’s index reveals that corruption levels are at […]
Electric scooter accidents on the rise in Switzerland
With more and more electric scooters on Swiss streets every year the number of accidents is rising. In 2021, there were around 2,500 accidents involving electric scooters in Switzerland, according to an estimate by Suva, a public insurer. The latest figure is three times the 800 accidents involving electric scooters estimated by Suva in 2019. […]
Man must reimburse welfare payments with inheritance, rules Bern tribunal
In some parts of Switzerland, welfare payments are sometimes considered more like bridging loans to help someone through a financially difficult period rather than a one-way payment. A recent case in the canton of Bern shows this system in action. According to 20 Minutes, a man who received welfare over 20 years was asked to […]
