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Most Swiss favour limits on executive pay

A large majority of Swiss favour new rules to rein in what they feel are excessive salaries for top executives, a survey released on Sunday shows.

A survey conducted by the gfs polling and research institute in Zurich found that 75 per cent of Swiss would approve an initiative to limit manager salaries and strengthen shareholder rights if the issue came to a vote today.

Nine per cent said they would vote against it.

The issue is at least one year away from the ballot box, but the poll published in the SonntagsZeitung and Le Matin Dimanche newspapers revealed the measure has broad support across party lines.

The centre-left Social Democratic Party showed the strongest support, with 86 per cent of respondents saying they would vote “yes” on the initiative. The rightwing Swiss People’s Party also favours the measure with 71 per cent. Respondents from the centre-right Radical Party approve it with 66 per cent.

The survey was conducted between March 23 and April 20, when pollsters asked 1,005 voters in German- and French-speaking Switzerland how they would vote on the initiative.

swissinfo.ch with agencies

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