One in two Swiss in favour of lockdown for unvaccinated

A rally against the Covid-19 measures on October 23, 2021 in Bern. Keystone / Peter Schneider

In a survey of 1,000 Swiss residents, half of the respondents approved of movement restrictions for people not vaccinated against Covid-19. 

Older residents are even more wary of the unvaccinated. According to the survey, published on Sunday by the Sonntagsblick news outlet, two-thirds of people aged between 60 and 79 support the idea of lockdowns for the unvaccinated.

The respondents were split over the issue, with 47% against lockdown for the unvaccinated, while 3% had no opinion. The idea of a lockdown for all, on the other hand, was rejected by 80% of respondents.

The idea of compulsory vaccinations was also divisive, according to the survey carried out by the Link Institute. Half of all Swiss men and women were in favour of compulsory vaccination. Approval of compulsory vaccination rises to 62% in the 60-79 age group and to 68% in Italian-speaking Switzerland, which was hit the hardest during the first Covid wave in 2020. 

Moreover, 65% of respondents agree that vaccination should be compulsory for certain occupational groups, such as those in healthcare.

Changing attitudes

Two-thirds of the Swiss surveyed also approve of the introduction of stricter measures that will be applicable from Monday. The government announced that only people who have been vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19 (so-called 2G rule) will be able to access restaurants, cultural, sporting and leisure venues and attend indoor events.

In a previous survey carried out at the end of November, half of those questioned were against stricter protective measures. The proportion has now fallen to a third.

Switzerland recorded 9,941 new infections on Friday, with 1,627 hospitalisations and 294 patients in intensive care. This last figure is the most concerning for the government, which fears that hospital intensive care units may be over-run as the new Omicron variant spreads.