Swiss parliament backs payment cards for asylum-seekers
Payment cards are intended to make Switzerland less attractive for asylum-seekers because they no longer receive cash that they could transfer to their home country.
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Listening: Swiss parliament backs payment cards for asylum-seekers
The Swiss parliament has expressed support for a payment card for asylum-seekers. The House of Representatives is examining how such a means of payment could be introduced nationwide. The Senate has already passed a similar postulate.
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Parlament zeigt Sympathien für Bezahlkarten für Asylsuchende
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On Thursday the House of Representatives passed a postulate from the Political Institutions Committee by 128 votes to 59. Payment cards are intended to make Switzerland less attractive for asylum-seekers because they no longer receive cash that they could transfer to their home country.
The cantons pay benefits to asylum-seekers. The government should therefore clarify how the cantons could be supported in introducing the card. It should also explain what impact these cards would have on crime.
Andreas Glarner from the right-wing Swiss People’s Party said on behalf of the Political Institutions Committee that the aim of the card is to ensure that social welfare funds are used in a targeted manner and can no longer be transferred abroad. A similar postulate was already referred by the Senate last June. The government expressed its opposition.
Translated from German by DeepL/ts
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