Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
Do you see the glass as half full or half empty?
Your answer to this question could influence how you interpret the results of the PISA survey on the academic skills of school pupils in Switzerland. In international comparison, performance remains good, even very good. But there is one downside: for the past ten years, the level of pupils has been declining in mathematics and reading.
On that note, happy reading!
Swiss pupils remain strong in mathematics, reading and science, the PISA study revealed on Tuesday. However, academic skills have been declining for a decade, both in Switzerland and in other European countries.
Swiss 15-year-olds have skills above the average for countries in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in science, reading and mathematics. In the latter subject, they even rank in the top 10 in the world, according to the PISA study. Carried out every three years, the survey compares the academic skills of teenagers in around 100 countries.
On the other side of the coin, the reading and mathematics skills of young Swiss people have been declining steadily over the past ten years. In science, the results have remained relatively stable since 2015. Another worrying sign is that the proportion of pupils who do not meet the minimum level of proficiency has increased.
Social background, language spoken at home and migration status continue to influence pupils’ results. Those from socially disadvantaged backgrounds performed, on average, significantly lower. Although there has been a decrease in inequalities, this is mainly due to a decline in the performance of the more privileged pupils.
The historic breakthrough of the Alternative for Germany (AfD) party in Saxony-Anhalt continues to occupy the Swiss media on Tuesday. Some wonder whether this victory could benefit the Swiss People’s Party in Switzerland.
It is difficult to say whether the Swiss People’s Party could benefit from the AfD’s rise in Germany, according to political scientist Reto Mitteregger, interviewed by Watson. In his view, the Swiss right-wing party could benefit above all from the fact that immigration is the subject of a lively debate in many European countries. “But there could also be a counter-mobilisation, with people saying: ‘We don’t want such a policy in our country’,” he said.
“We will probably never see the Swiss People’s Party win more than 40% of the votes nationally in our lifetime,” says Mitteregger. He points out that Switzerland is not the country of sudden changes, not least because of the tools of direct democracy. “The turnout is lower and the fluctuations are less marked than in Germany,” the political scientist also points out.
Former Swiss ambassador to Germany, Tim Guldimann, qualifies the comparison between the AfD and the Swiss People’s Party in the Tamedia newspapers. “I don’t see in the Swiss People’s Party this ethno-racist component that the AfD is associated with,” he says. He also stresses that dialogue and compromises are possible with Switzerland’s largest party, while the AfD is pursuing a policy of systematic obstruction.
New blow for Swiss Post staff. The yellow giant announced a new cost-cutting programme on Monday that could result in the elimination of up to 110 jobs by the end of 2027.
Swiss Post wants to reduce its costs by the end of next year. The company justifies these measures by the continuing decline in the volume of letters and over-the-counter transactions. In its view, growth in new business areas and price increases are not yet sufficient to compensate for the decline in revenues.
The plan includes a reduction in the number of staff in management and support functions. Up to 110 redundancies could thus take place in “traditional administrative functions”. Operating staff active in mail delivery and those in subsidiaries, on the other hand, are not affected.
“Despite a profit of CHF139 million in the first half of 2026, Swiss Post is maintaining its dismantling strategy,” denounces Syndicom. The media and communication sector’s union stresses that this announcement is part of a series of restructuring initiatives that have taken place in recent months. According to it, almost no sector of the company is now immune to job cuts, reorganisations or outsourcing.
Positive results for the sale of cannabis in pharmacies. The results of a two-year study conducted in Biel/Bienne, Bern and Lucerne show that this model promotes less risky consumption practices.
Contrary to the fears expressed at the launch of the experiment, the sale of cannabis in pharmacies has not led to an increase in the frequency of consumption. The results even show a slight downward trend. Consumers also benefit from advice on potentially less harmful modes of consumption, such as vaping or oral ingestion.
Cannabis flowers represent 65% of the products sold in the study, ahead of e-cigarette liquids, which account for 21% of sales. Prices were set according to those charged on the illegal market. However, they remain slightly higher, as they are taxed.
The participants in the study were also satisfied. The majority of them praised the quality of the products, the transparency in their composition and the safety of the purchasing environment.
Translated from French, sub-edited by Anand Chandrasekhar
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