On Thursday, the House of Representatives joined the Senate in voting down the motion from the People’s Party.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has forced up the price of oil and gas. Switzerland recently joined other European countries in declaring an embargo on crude oil imports and certain refined petroleum products from Russia.
The Federal Electricity Commission has warned that bills will rise by nearly 50% for Swiss energy consumers next year.
This prompted the People’s Party to submit a parliamentary motion to halve taxes on oil products, which has now failed.
In April, the government set up a working group to examine whether measures are needed to cushion low income households against the expected price hikes.
But a month later, Finance Minister Ueli Maurer came out against government support, saying the state did not have enough resources to bail out the population.
“Such measures are not necessary with inflation at 2.5%,” he told the Tages Anzeiger newspaper. “Petrol prices are affordable in wealthy Switzerland.”
In a separate debate, the Senate backed government plans to set aside CHF10 billion ($10 billion) as emergency financing for energy suppliers. The House of Representatives has yet to debate the proposal.
Swiss money laundering office registers record number of reports
This content was published on
The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland (MROS) registered a record number of reports of suspicious activity last year.
Two teens accused of planning terror attack released from custody
This content was published on
The Schaffhausen judiciary has released the two teenagers from custody who allegedly planned bomb attacks in Switzerland.
OECD: Sluggish economic activity slowing growth in Switzerland
This content was published on
Sluggish economic activity at the start of the year is weighing on growth in Switzerland, with GDP expected to fall to 1.1% in 2024.
Report finds mistakes which led to Swiss government data breach
This content was published on
Mistakes were made by both the government and internet company Xplain in the case of a criminal cyber-attack on the Bern-based IT business.
Swiss government wants better gender balance in federal administration
This content was published on
New Swiss government personnel management targets say there must be even more female managers in the federal administration.
Swiss national science foundation funded over 5,000 projects in 2023
This content was published on
In 2023, the Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF) provided a total of CHF961 million worth of funding towards research projects.
Switzerland invites 160 delegations to June Ukraine peace talks
This content was published on
Russia is currently not among the delegations invited to talks aimed at helping bring about peace in the conflict between Moscow and Ukraine.
Survey: air travel most popular way to go on holidays for Swiss
This content was published on
Despite the climate crisis, flying is the most popular mode of transport for private travel – particularly among young, urban and high-income travellers.
Swiss government to use phone data to identify asylum seekers
This content was published on
From April 2025, authorities plan to be able to analyse data from mobile phones, computers and other data carriers to identify asylum seekers.
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
Finance minister rules out state support to cope with inflation
This content was published on
Swiss Finance Minister Ueli Maurer has spoken out against government support for consumers affected by higher energy prices.
This content was published on
Until recently the increase of Swiss energy bills was slower than in most countries. This doesn’t mean part of the population does not feel the pain.
This content was published on
The escalating cost of basic food products, such as wheat, has provoked social unrest in the poorer parts of the world. At the same time, the increasing price of oil threatens to put a brake on recovery from the global recession. Speaking at the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Davos, French President Nicolas Sarkozy…
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.