After a referendum in March 2018 threatened to axe Switzerland’s costly broadcasting fee, the government put forward a counter proposal, which was adopted when 71.6% of voters voted to keep the fee. On 1 January 2019, the lower fee contained in the government’s plan will come into force. Next year, instead of CHF 451, each […]
Investigating suspected welfare cheats – Swiss vote on where to draw the line
On 25 November 2018, Swiss will vote on whether to accept laws allowing detectives to uncover welfare fraud. Currently, there is nothing specific in Swiss law covering the practice. In the past, investigators have been used to gather evidence on disability and accident beneficiaries. Between 2009 and 2016, detectives were used on around 220 investigations […]
Swiss vote results on cycling and agriculture – 23 September 2018
Today, Swiss voters voted on a cycling and two agricultural initiatives. Voters were asked to decide on whether to elevate cycling to the same status as hiking and driving. Currently, Switzerland’s constitution mentions roads and hiking trails, but not cycling lanes, something many cyclists would like to see changed. The first agricultural initiative, the Fair Food Initiative, […]
Switzerland’s two very different votes on food and agriculture
On Sunday, Swiss voters will get to decide on two initiative related to food. The first is the Fair Food Initiative, a proposal aimed at making food healthier and its production more environmentally friendly. It calls on the government to promote environmentally sound, animal-friendly and fairly produced food by introducing new requirements for Swiss produce […]
Geneva set to vote on maintaining public spending in the face of company tax reform
An initiative entitled: zero losses, was filed this week in Geneva. It aims to ring fence current public spending in the face of future company tax reform. The initiative gathered 9,147 signatures, more than the 7,840 required. Under pressure from the OECD and the EU, Switzerland is being forced to make major changes to its tax […]
Economiesuisse warns of economic dangers of vote against foreign judges
The business and industry association Economiesuisse says the up-coming vote on 25 November 2018 on self-determination puts the Swiss economy at risk. The Swiss People’s Party led initiative entitled: Federal law instead of foreign judges, aims to cement the primacy of Swiss law over international law by adding a clause to Switzerland’s constitution. The Federal Council, […]
Vote to end free Swiss-EU migration gets enough signatures
Organizers of a vote to limit immigration into Switzerland from EU and EFTA nations, had until 18 July 2019 to collect 100,000 valid signatures. Last week, almost one year ahead of the deadline, the Swiss People’s Party announced that they had collected 125,000 signatures. Surprised by how quickly the signatures were collected, Swiss People’s Party leader […]
Geneva – vote to challenge new laws some deem discriminatory
In April 2018, the government of Geneva introduced rules designed to protect religious freedom and preserve religious peace, known as laïcité, or secularity, laws. Laïcité is enshrined in article 3 of Geneva’s constitution, which requires the state to be secular and separate from religion. In Switzerland, religion is a cantonal matter. Geneva’s parliament voted 63 […]
Swiss parliament rejects initiative calling for primacy of Swiss law
On 12 June 2018, an initiative calling for a constitutional amendment, which would place Swiss law above international law, was rejected by the National Council by 129 to 68 votes, after a lengthy nine hour discussion spanning three days. Earlier, the initiative dubbed: Swiss law not foreign judges, organized by the Swiss People’s Party (UDC/SVP), […]
Plan to drop French in primary school rejected by voters in Basel-Landschaft
Over the weekend, a majority of voters in the canton of Basel-Landschaft rejected a plan to remove French from the primary school syllabus. The plan entitled: Stop overloading pupils, called for removal of French from the syllabus. Most children in German-speaking Switzerland speak Swiss German at home. When they go to school they must learn […]
