Switzerland Today
Hello from Bern, where energy concerns are again the focus of political debates, and of today’s briefing – along with all the other news and updates on Monday.
In the news: energy worries, ongoing solidarity, ATM bombs.
- The threat of energy shortages this winter shouldn’t be over-dramatized, Economics Minister Guy Parmelin told RTS public radio today. Parmelin said the government is poised to announce more details of its energy strategy in the coming weeks, with the key concern being to avoid rationing. Parmelin’s comments come amid growing calls by politicians and businesses for clearer government action.
- Six months after war broke out in Ukraine, the commitment of Swiss citizens who took refugees into their homes is proving more persistent than expected, Tamedia newspapers wrote today. Some 60% – or 40,000 – of all registered Ukrainian refugees in Switzerland are still housed privately, and only 5-10% were relocated by the summer, the papers write. After the initial wave of solidarity, there were fears that the reality of living with strangers could lead to hosts losing enthusiasm.
- A Dutch national has been charged by Swiss prosecutors for going equipped to blow up cash machines in the country. The 51-year-old was stopped by customs officers last November whilst driving a stolen car into Switzerland from Germany. The vehicle contained explosives and other equipment that police believe was intended for ATM attacks. Switzerland has seen a spate of explosive ATM robberies in recent years, with a first conviction handed down in December 2021.
- Swiss passports are set to get a design overhaul as of October 31 next, authorities said todayExternal link. While they will retain their classic redness, new will be the inclusion of the Swiss Abroad community on one of the visa pages; to date only the 26 Swiss cantons have had this honour. The overhaul is to ensure the booklets adhere to modern biometric security standards, authorities said. All current passports remain valid.
From don’t chew with your mouth open to just don’t chew.
The energy crisis is the issue of the moment. Fearing gas shortages in the winter, citizens have been stocking up on generators, the media is talking about fracking, and Economics Minister Guy Parmelin has been calling for calm (see news above). What’s to be done? The government’s strategy will be outlined in the coming weeks, Parmelin said – but today’s Le Temps already has a tailor-made solution. The paper reportsExternal link on a new study which finds that the pesky human habit of mastication can raise baseline bodily energy expenditure by up to 15% – almost precisely the percentage of Switzerland’s energy accounted for by gas! It’s simple: if we stopped chewing, and also stopped eating, and perhaps stopped moving our bodies in general, the crisis would be over in no time.
New old pictures published of glaciers’ steady decline.
A dry winter and hot summer hasn’t done any favours for Swiss glaciers, where old body parts and plane debris are popping up as the ice retreats. One Alpine pass on the border between cantons Valais and Vaud is set to become snow free for the first time since at least the Roman era, AFP reported last week. It’s just a freakishly hot summer! (say the last of the sceptics). It was worse in 2003! (say the critical thinkers). But for the glaciers, at least, nothing is theoretical – they lost 50% of their volume between 1931 and 2016, ETH Zurich writes todayExternal link, presenting its findings along with a series of before/after photos of the receding ice. SWI swissinfo.ch made a similar gallery in 2018.
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