The cost of healthcare and the compulsory insurance residents must pay to fund it continue to rise. In 2022, healthcare spending rose 2.5%. At the same time, dental care is not covered. Politicians from the Green Party would like it included in basic cover. However, parliament voted against the idea this week, reported RTS. The […]
No price rises for Swiss public transport in 2025
Alliance Swisspass, an organisation that stitches together Switzerland’s various public transport providers to create tickets and passes that work across the network, announced this week that there would be no ticket price increases in 2025, reported SRF. A recent rise in the number of people using the network is bringing in more revenue. This is […]
Higher Swiss pensions to be funded with higher tax
On 3 March 2024, a majority of Swiss voters accepted a plan to increase the state pension by 1/12th (8.3%) – an extra 13th month of pension will be paid from 2026. Organisers of the vote claimed pension finances were in good shape, implying there was money to fund it. However, there wasn’t. This week […]
Swiss cabinet to give up free ski passes
Currently, the members of Switzerland’s cabinet, known as the Federal Council, are given free ski passes covering all of Switzerland. The pass is worth around CHF 4,000. This week, the Federal Council announced its members and their partners would no longer receive the passes from 2025, reported RTS. The free passes first stirred controversy initially […]
Swiss assisted suicide in UK news after woman takes her own life
This week a high profile case of assisted suicide in Switzerland made the news in the UK. Paola Marra, a UK woman with terminal cancer, who felt she had no choice but to end her life at Dignitas in Switzerland left behind a video message calling on people to help change the law on assisted […]
Vote on Swiss neutrality passes signature hurdle
The team behind an initiative to add new wording on Swiss neutrality to the nation’s constitution succeeded this week in collecting sufficient signatures to call a referendum, reported RTS. Vote organisers claim to have collected 140,000 signatures, of which 110,000 have already been authenticated. Walter Wobmann, the leader of the initiative said that the signatures […]
Swiss court acquits defendant in euthanasia trial
In 2017, a Swiss doctor prescribed pentobarbital, a drug used in anesthesia, to a healthy 86-year-old woman who wanted to die alongside her seriously ill husband. Before consulting the doctor, the woman had already signed a notarised document stating that she could not psychologically bear the prospect of living without her husband. Pierre Beck, the […]
EU nations approve new negotiations with Switzerland
This week, the European Commission was given a green light to negotiate a new deal with Switzerland, reported RTS. The start of negotiations requires the approval of all EU members. On 12 March 2024, they all agreed. The European Commission, the EU’s governing body, said on Tuesday that it had formal permission to open discussions […]
Swiss government rejects plan for universal public service
Currently, Switzerland’s system of compulsory public service is focused on the military and applies only to men. A vote aimed at shifting to a universal system compulsory for everyone, met with resistance from the federal government this week, reported SRF. The Federal Council said it was opposed to the idea and offered no counter proposal. […]
Church tax – should Swiss companies be forced to pay?
Individuals can opt out of church tax in most cantons. But companies rarely can, despite many having no connection with a church or a religion. The topic has been a hot political subject for a long time in Switzerland and came back under the spotlight this week when the canton of Bern discussed making it […]
