Immigration to Switzerland rises ahead of vote on EU free-movement deal
Immigration contributed a net 55,000 people to Switzerland’s population last year
Keystone
Net immigration to Switzerland rose again last year, ahead of a May referendum pushed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party on ending an accord with the European Union on the free movement of citizens.
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Imigração para a Suíça aumenta antes da votação do acordo de livre circulação com a UE
Immigration contributed a net 55,000 people to Switzerland’s population last year, the State Secretariat for Migration saidExternal link on Thursday. The foreign population stood at 2.1 million at year’s end, or around a quarter of the overall 8.5 million.
Net immigration from the European Union and EFTA countries Iceland, Norway and Liechtenstein increased by nearly 32,000, mostly as Romanians and Bulgarians took advantage of the full opening of the Swiss labour market for them as of June 2019.
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Justice minister says limiting free movement would be ‘Swiss Brexit’
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Combating the anti-immigration initiative from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party is currently one of her priorities, Keller-Sutter told the media on Friday. The bilateral path taken by non-EU Switzerland means prosperity and jobs, she said. “860,000 jobs in Switzerland depend on it.” An acceptance of the initiative would be “the Swiss Brexit”, Keller-Sutter said, referring…
The biggest groups of EU citizens living in Switzerland are from Italy, Germany, France, Portugal and Kosovo.
In a binding referendum on May 17, voters will decide whether Switzerland should take back unilateral control of immigration, if necessary at the cost of abrogating the free-movement pact with the EU that took full effect in 2007.
The referendum under the Swiss system of direct democracy is being billed as Switzerland’s “Brexit moment”.
Imposing limits
The referendum drive reflects unease with the influx of foreigners. But imposing limits on EU citizens would violate bilateral accords that enhance Swiss access to the EU single market, the lifeblood of the export-led Swiss economy.
Campaigning to oppose the proposition in the referendum is a priority for the Swiss government, which has struggled to put relations with the surrounding EU on a new footing.
Brussels wants the Swiss to endorse a new treaty that would have Bern routinely adopt single market rules and create a more effective platform to resolve disputes.
The Swiss government has dragged its feet for months while it tries to forge domestic consensus on how to proceed, annoying Brussels and triggering a row over cross-border stock trading. The May vote has put any progress on hold.
The treaty ran aground amid opposition that spanned the normally pro-Europe centre left to the anti-EU far right. Critics say the pact infringes Swiss sovereignty to the extent that it would never get through parliament or pass a referendum.
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Switzerland could ‘lack 700,000 workers’ in decade’s time
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Swiss Employers’ Association warns country is facing a shortage of 700,000 workers in ten years’ time and that immigration was key to plug the gap.
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Parliament votes against anti-immigration plans
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Switzerland’s House of Representatives has come out strongly against an initiative by the Swiss People’s Party to limit immigration.
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The number of immigrants in Switzerland without a legal residence permit has continued to drop over the past few years, according to the Swiss Border Guards.
Initiative to stop free movement with EU takes next step
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Campaigners seeking to end Switzerland’s free movement of people agreement with the EU have handed in signatures in Bern.
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If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.