Political support for Euro bid
Switzerland's joint bid with Austria to host the 2008 European football championships is winning support among Swiss parliamentarians.
A parliamentary standing committee responsible for science, education and culture has recommended that the bid’s organisers receive a SFr 3.5 million ($2.19 million) state grant if they succeed in their European bid.
The committee said that the opportunity to stage the European Championships would be of great political, social, economic and cultural importance for both countries.
Both houses of the Swiss parliament will consider the recommendation during their summer and autumn sessions.
The Austrian parliament has promised to contribute some SFr 60 million to the bid. However this includes money for the building of new stadiums for which the Swiss parliament has already handed over SFr 34 million.
The total cost of staging Euro 2008 is estimated at around SFr 120 million. European football’s governing body UEFA will vote on the venue for the championships in December.
swissinfo with agencies
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