Voters rejected urban sprawl curbs due to adequate laws
An aerial view of the village of Etoy in canton Vaud (photo taken in 2013)
Keystone / Laurent Gillieron
This content was published on
2 minutes
Keystone SDA/sb
A study shows that Swiss voters threw out a proposal last February aimed at curbing urban sprawl as most people felt that existing rules were sufficient.
A Voto study published on Thursday revealed that over 80% of Swiss citizens believe green spaces and farmland should be better protected. Nevertheless, on February 10 almost 64% of Swiss voters rejected a proposed freeze on construction zones across the country. The initiative had been launched by the youth chapter of the Green Party.
Analysing the initiative results, Voto researchers found that most people voted ‘No’ in February as they felt existing laws were sufficient to combat urban sprawl. A majority of people questioned felt the initiative had been too restrictive and had sought to impose too many rules.
Most Green Party supporters (91%) backed the initiative. Meanwhile, 80% of people who said they were centre-right supporters rejected the proposal. Centre-left Social Democrats and Green Liberals were split. Of those who gave their support, two-thirds said they backed it for environmental reasons, while 10% said existing laws were insufficient.
The 37.9% turnout for the February ballot was below average, despite a lively but short public campaign. The Voto survey revealed that 44% of those who didn’t vote said it was because they had forgotten, 34% said they had ill or had been on holiday, while 32% said they were not interested in the urban sprawl issue.
The VOTO survey, financed by the Federal Chancellery, was conducted by the Centre for Democracy Studies Aarau (ZDA), the FORS research institute and the polling institute Link. It was conducted from February 12 to 26, 2019, with 1,517 voters.
Popular Stories
More
Multinational companies
Azeri fossil-fuel cash cow brings controversy to Switzerland
Swiss central banker wants to boost equity to head off risks
This content was published on
Equity levels at the Swiss National Bank (SNB) are much too low for the risks its large balance sheet poses, according to Martin Schlegel.
Beer sales in Switzerland watered down by bad weather
This content was published on
The past brewing year fell through in Switzerland, partly due to the bad weather. Beer sales shrank again. For the first time, per capita consumption fell below the 50 liter mark.
Compensation for Syrian after pregnant wife denied help on Swiss train
This content was published on
Switzerland’s Federal Court has partially upheld the appeal of a Syrian family being deported from Switzerland to Italy in 2014. The man now also receives compensation.
Swiss-EU negotiations: Cassis to meet Sefcovic in Bern
This content was published on
Swiss Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis will meet the Vice-President of the EU Commission, Maros Sefcovic, in Bern on Wednesday.
Heavy snowfall in Switzerland causes traffic chaos and accidents
This content was published on
The heavy snowfall late on Thursday and during the night into Friday led to traffic chaos and many accidents in many regions of Switzerland.
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.
Read more
More
Swiss dismiss freeze on construction zones
This content was published on
Voters have rejected a proposal aimed at curbing urban sprawl in Switzerland. The Green Party initiative failed to attract broad support.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
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.