Tag Archives: Editor’s Choice

In 1999, social expenditure in Switzerland was CHF 13,370 per resident. By 2019, the same figure had reached CHF 21,300, a rise of nearly 60%. © Alexey Stiop | Dreamstime.com Over the same period, total inflation was around 11%. Applying inflation to CHF 13,370 brings the figure to CHF 14,480. Why has the cost risen beyond this and how has the extra spending been funded? One of the key drivers behind the rise in social expenditure is increased spending on pensions as...

On 30 June 2021, Switzerland’s Federal Council discussed ways of preparing Switzerland for the autumn and winter months and a possible renewed rise in the number of coronavirus cases. © Silviu Matei | Dreamstime.com From the meeting ministers produced a report setting out various scenarios and response plans. The key elements are rapid identification of new variants of concern, continued progress with vaccination and a focus on ensuring sufficient capacity for...

In 1999, social expenditure in Switzerland was CHF 13,370 per resident. By 2019, the same figure had reached CHF 21,300, a rise of nearly 60%. © Alexey Stiop | Dreamstime.comOver the same period, total inflation was around 11%. Applying inflation to CHF 13,370 brings the figure to CHF 14,480. Why has the cost risen beyond this and how has the extra spending been funded? One of the key drivers behind the rise in social expenditure is increased spending on pensions as Switzerland’s...

Any animal raised and slaughtered in Switzerland can be labelled Swiss. However, what the animal has been fed could be from anywhere. If animals are what they eat then much of the meat and eggs labelled Swiss aren’t very Swiss. © Sergio Bertino | Dreamstime.com A key challenge for meat, dairy and egg consumers is the absence of information on labels, which is limited to provenance. Information about what an animal has been fed is not contained on the labels of meat,...

The Covid-19 pandemic plunged Switzerland’s budget into the red in 2020 and 2021. The federal government expects to return to normality with a balanced budget in 2022. © Asdf_1 | Dreamstime.comOn 30 June 2021, the Federal Council approved the outlines of a federal budget for 2022 and a financial plan for the period from 2023 to 2025. The balanced 2022 budget follows two years of pandemic-induced negative results. By the end of June 2021, the federal government had approved nearly...

On 1 July 2021, Switzerland’s revised telecommunications law came into effect. The new rules force mobile providers to make certain changes to deals they offer customers when roaming. Some of the resulting changes are positive, but not all. In addition, some operators have retained bundles that don’t comply with the new rules. © Jekaterina Voronina | Dreamstime.comThe new rules force mobile operators to change for roaming calls in increments of a second instead of increments of a minute,...

[unable to retrieve full-text content]On 23 June 2021, Switzerland’s government announced that it was loosening a wide range of Covid-19 restrictions from Saturday. From Saturday, 26 June 2021 rules on nightclubs, large events, remote working, education and restaurants will be loosened. In addition, it will become easier for travelers to enter Switzerland.

[unable to retrieve full-text content]This week, 880 new Covid-19 cases were recorded in Switzerland, down 44% from the week before (1,576). The daily number of cases on a 7-day rolling average is now 126. During the week, 22 people were reported being admitted to hospital in Switzerland with Covid-19.

Import quotas to protect farmers from outside competition are tightly managed in Switzerland. However, when Swiss farm production dips or demand rises, quotas are often eased to allow more low tariff imports. © Yasuhiro Amano | Dreamstime.comThis week, Switzerland’s government extended quotas on butter and potatoes in response to shortages. On 22 June 2021, Switzerland’s Federal Office for Agriculture (FOAG) announced it would increase the amount of butter that can be imported into...

Switzerland is well prepared to take on the Delta variant, said Christoph Berger, head of Switzerland’s federal vaccination commission. Based on what we currently know, there is no need to be concerned, he said, reported RTS. © Rodrigo Fernández | Dreamstime.com While it’s true that the variant is more contagious, nearly 90% of those vaccinated with two doses of mRNA vaccine are protected against this variant, Berger told the NZZ am Sonntag on 20 June 2021....