Tag Archives: Editor’s Choice

From Friday 30 April 2021, old Swiss bank notes will no longer be legal tender. This means they can no longer be used as a valid means of payment. © Jean-michel Feinen | Dreamstime.comThe notes affected are old 10, 20, 50, 100, 200 and 1,000 Swiss franc notes. From 30 April 2021, the only places that will accept these notes are Swiss Rail and Swiss Post, who will accept them until 30 October 2021. After 30 October 2021, the only places that will accept these notes are the cash desks...

This week, Switzerland’s government set out the three phases of its plan to return to normal at a press conference recorded by RTS. The first is the protection phase, which we are currently in. This involves vaccinating the vulnerable and could last until the end of May 2021. The second is the stabilisation phase. This involves vaccinating all adults who want the shot. At this point bars could begin to open and larger events could be allowed with access limited to...

Recently published statistics show that 36% of homes are owned by those who live in them, a rate that falls to 12% in municipalities with more than 100,000 residents. Lausanne © Ocskay Mark | Dreamstime.comSwiss municipalities with the highest rates of home ownership (37%) have between 10,000 and 15,000 residents, a rate exceeding the smallest municipalities of less than 10,000 residents (31%). At a cantonal level, the cantons with the lowest rates of home ownership were Geneva...

© Filmfoto | Dreamstime.com This week, Alain Berset, Switzerland’s health minister said that 80% of the population must be immunised for the virus to stop spreading, according to RTS. Vaccination against the SARS-CoV-2 virus is voluntary in Switzerland. Currently, estimates suggest only 60% of Switzerland’s population is prepared to be vaccinated, according to Berset, a figure below the level required to get rid of the virus. If 60% had immunity the virus would still...

In 2020, total reserves held by Swiss health insurance companies reached CHF 11.3 billion, a level equivalent to 203% of the minimum required, according to RTS. © Andrey Popov | Dreamstime.comExcess reserves jumped recently after the government cut the minimum reserve level by one third, part of a move designed to encourage health insurers to align premiums more closely with costs. The government wants to reduce the chance of insurance companies dipping into reserves to support the...

On 14 April 2021, Switzerland’s federal government announced it had spent CHF 14.2 billion more that it had collected in revenue in 2020. © Marekusz | Dreamstime.comThe loss represents the federal government’s consolidated excess expenditure for the year and is linked to the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic, according to the statement. An additional CHF 16.8 billion was spent as a result of the pandemic. Consolidated accounts include the results of companies linked to the...

Around three years ago, the Swiss canton of Jura introduced a minimum wage of CHF 20 an hour (US$ 21.65). Now there is political pressure relook at the move, according to RTS. © Kasto80 | Dreamstime.comA group of cantonal parliamentarians from the PDC (CVP) is pushing for a review of the situation in response to pressure from some young people. The group says that the CHF 20 floor on hourly wages is having a negative effect on the employment prospects of some job seekers, particularly...

© Marekusz | Dreamstime.com According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Switzerland has economically navigated the Covid-19 pandemic well so far. In 2020, the Swiss economy shrank by 2.9%, far less than many other advanced European economies. France (-8.2%), Germany (-4.9%), Italy (-8.9%) and the UK (-9.9%) all performed far worse. According to the IMF, the impact of the pandemic in Switzerland was cushioned by solid public and household finances, competitive...

At the beginning of the pandemic there were calls to avoid using cash for sanitary reasons. Contactless electronic payment was the recommended method of transacting. © Maksym Kapliuk | Dreamstime.comLast spring cash withdrawals from cash machines sank by 50% in Switzerland, according to the SIX Group. Across the whole of 2020, cash withdrawals from Swiss cash machines was down 23% and contactless payments were up, according to Le Temps. However, despite rising cashless payments and...

© Hideko1979 | Dreamstime.com The French region of Bourgogne-Franche Comté has contacted several Swiss cantons and asked them if they would take Covid patients, according to RTS. Jacques Gerber, the minister of health in the canton of Jura told RTS that there had been a request from France to prepare in case French hospitals become overloaded. New cases have only been rising moderately in Switzerland since mid March. In France the number has risen steeply, reaching...