Switzerland Today

Dear Swiss Abroad,

In June, Swiss citizens approved the government and parliament's plan for "a secure electricity supply with renewable energies". The focus of the debate was mainly on solar, hydro and wind power, but little attention was given to the proverbial elephant in the room - nuclear energy.

Public opinion is now shifting. According to a recent poll, the population is nearly split 50-50 between those who oppose and those who support the construction of new nuclear power plants. Heated debates are on the horizon.

I now leave you with today’s news. Happy reading!

Keystone

Swiss reconsider nuclear energy

The Swiss are having second thoughts about nuclear energy but they remain undecided. A survey by the Swiss online news portal Watson shows growing support for the return of nuclear power.

In 2017, 58.7% of the Swiss population opposed nuclear energy. Today, according to the Watson survey, that figure has dropped to 51%, with 1% undecided and 48% in favour of building new nuclear power plants.

Energy Minister Albert Rösti supports the pro-nuclear group. In mid-August, he announced that the government plans to overturn a ban on building new power plants to strengthen local energy supply. In 2017 Swiss citizens approved the gradual phase-out of nuclear power in the Alpine country. 

• Watson portal articleExternal link (in German)
• RSI summaryExternal link (in Italian).

Keystone / Gaetan Bally

Leaving a legacy for the greater good

Should people focus on their descendants or the greater good? A recent survey shows that nearly one in five people in Switzerland has included a foundation or non-profit organisation in their will.

This is the highest figure since the Alliance for the Common Good began commissioning the survey. Despite this, only 0.3% of the CHF95 billion ($112 billion) inherited annually in Switzerland goes to these organisations. The vast majority goes to family members.

Nearly two-thirds of respondents said they have thought more about death in recent years, and about half are considering writing a will, both figures showing significant increases in recent surveys.

According to Nicole Kayser of the Alliance for the Common GoodExternal link, “As people get older, they tend to reflect more on this issue.” Several organisations have also raised awareness about the option of including charitable causes in living wills in recent years.

• More details on the SRF websiteExternal link (in German)

Keystone-SDA

Fish in peril: Swiss lakes and rivers at risk

The fish populations in Switzerland’s lakes and rivers (trout, chub, pike and others) are increasingly under threat due to parasites and higher water temperatures.

A parasite that primarily affects brown trout, causing a fatal kidney disease, has recently spread north of the Alps. According to Professor Heike Schmidt-Posthaus of the University of Bern, this is linked to warmer streams, rivers and lakes caused by climate change.

South of the Alps, the parasite has so far caused no significant harm. It has been detected only in the Laveggio River in the south of canton Ticino, where a “respectable trout population” still swims, according to local authorities.

However, even in Ticino, fish are not immune to other threats such as extreme weather, droughts, pollution and the emptying of reservoirs.

• RSI in-depth reportExternal link (in Italian)

Keystone / Andrea Soltermann

Swiss government: bad weather relief, VAT price hike, and no action on signature scandal

The Federal Council announced several key decisions following its weekly session today: additional funds for cantons affected by this year’s bad weather, a VAT increase to finance the 13th old-age and survivors’ pension payment (AHV/AVS) and no action on the scandal surrounding signature collection for initiatives and referendums.

Despite reports of forged signatures and irregular practices, the government said there is no reliable evidence to suggest that any initiatives have succeeded illegally. It also confirmed it would not suspend the processing of current initiatives or retroactively verify the signatures of previously successful initiatives. It cited potential legal issues and political uncertainty as reasons for this decision.

The government also requested an additional CHF56.5 million ($66.8 million) to restore and replace protective infrastructure destroyed by storms in cantons Graubünden, Ticino, Valais, Vaud and Bern. According to a survey by the Federal Office for the Environment, the affected cantons require CHF119 million to restore safety levels to what they were before the storms.

Finally, the Federal Council decided to raise VAT by 0.7 percentage points to fund the 13th AHV/AVS pension payment, which was approved by voters in March and is set to be introduced in 2026. The increase follows a reassessment of the financial outlook for the state pension system, which had initially been believed to be worse off than it actually is due to a calculation error.

• OASI increase explained by RTSExternal link (in French)
• News about repair credits covered by RTNExternal link (in French)
• The government’s stanceExternal link on the signature collection scandal

Keystone / Gian Ehrenzeller

Switzerland in focus

This week many people in Switzerland have had to dig out their cold-weather clothes.

The first snowfall has swiftly arrived as seen in our photo of the day taken on the San Bernardino pass.

Translated from Italian with DeepL/amva/sb