Switzerland Today
Dear Swiss Abroad,
The rain has not affected the lingering euphoria generated by the successfully completed Women's European Football Championship. In the briefing, we look back on a time full of records and football fever.
We also touch the topics of e-voting and the value of Credit Suisse in the takeover by UBS.
Warm greetings from Bern
A new survey by Swiss Post shows that the majority of Swiss people are in favour of e-voting – despite concerns about data protection and security.
The Swiss want e-voting. At least that can be deduced from the results of a new survey conducted by Swiss Post and the market research institute Yougov.
77% of the approximately 2000 respondents aged between 18 and 74 from all parts of the country hoped that e-voting would give the Swiss Abroad better access to voting, according to Swiss Post.
73% of respondents also hoped that e-voting would make voting easier and 72% hoped for a higher voter turnout, a large majority also sees advantages for the visually impaired.
But the respondents also see disadvantages, 43% fear that the secrecy of the vote could be jeopardised. There are also fears of possible manipulation of the system. However, two-thirds of those surveyed stated that they trust Swiss Post as the technical provider of the e-voting system.
The Credit Suisse takeover could retroactively cost UBS billions: The value of Credit Suisse is being negotiated at the Zurich Commercial Court – the amount in dispute is CHF50 billion.
In March 2023, UBS acquired Credit Suisse for CHF3 billion. Was that a realistic sum or a ridiculous price? This question is currently at issue before the Zurich Commercial Court.
More than 5,000 former Credit Suisse shareholders have sued because they consider the takeover price to be much too low. “Until then, the bank had taken the position that the defunct rival was actually worth nothing,” writes the Sonntagszeitung. The price of CHF3 billion was arbitrarily negotiated with the federal government at the time, the plaintiffs argue.
The Commercial Court has set the amount in dispute at CHF50 billion – a sign that the value could be more than CHF3 billion. An independent expert report will now determine the actual value of Credit Suisse at the time of the takeover.
The Women’s European Football Championship is now over. With sold-out stadiums and great enthusiasm, the Swiss-hosted tournament set new standards – on and off the pitch.
Yesterday evening there was a dramatic penalty shoot-out in Basel; the English women prevailed and were able to defend their European Championship title.
This marks the end of four weeks of football euphoria and records: 29 of 31 games were sold out, which has never happened before, according to the newspapers of CH Media. Both the fan march in Bern to Switzerland’s quarter-final against Spain were also the largest ever held at a Euro in women’s football, with 25,000 fans. Up to 956,000 people watched the game on Swiss television, a women’s football record.
Beyond the numbers and top sporting performances, the feeling that the Women’s European Football Championship left behind in Switzerland remains. That football is not just for men, as the NZZ am Sonntag writes. That it is also possible to celebrate peacefully and collectively off the pitch.
Summertime brings high activity in the sky – and quarrels on the ground. At Swiss International Airlines, the technicians’ night work model is causing tensions – while there is increasing discussion in the industry about stress and safety.
Are you one of the Swiss Abroad who flew to Switzerland for a visit in the summer? Summertime is high season for airlines – and that has consequences. For example, for the technicians who maintain planes at night so that they can take off again early in the morning.
A dispute has now broken out over the shift schedules of these employees. As Blick reports, the technicians work five night shifts of eleven hours in a row, after which they have five days off. SWISS now apparently wants to shake up this model, a move that the union denounces.
In an interview with the Tages-Anzeiger , a Swiss pilot who is responsible for safety at the pilots’ association Aeropers says that he used to describe flying as safe. “Today I don’t say it so absolutely, but rather: flying is basically safe“. Reasons for the decreasing safety are the congested airspace or understaffed air traffic control.
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