Archive – Democracy

Motorway tax price hike causes controversy

This content was published on Oct 11, 2013 An outcry followed the announcement that the tax “vignette” – an annual levy required to use all Swiss motorways and dual carriageways – was to shoot up in price from CHF40 to CHF100 ($44-$110) from 2016. Opponents complained that the increase was too high, that foreigners would be getting special treatment because they would benefit…

Fighting over tax breaks and family role models

This content was published on Oct 9, 2013 The promoters of a fiscal reduction for stay-at-home parents say their initiative is aimed at doing away with a discriminatory tax system and putting all families on par. No specific amount is mentioned in the initiative text. Current regulations covering childcare allow an annual reduction of CHF10,000 ($11,094) per child from the taxable income. “Those who…

Voters urged to reject cap on executive pay

This content was published on Sep 27, 2013 As anger at multi-million dollar payouts for executives has spread around the globe since the financial crisis, Swiss voters forged ahead in March by backing some of the world’s strictest controls on executive pay, forcing public companies to give shareholders a binding vote on compensation. Now, the so-called 1:12 initiative, which faces a popular vote…

‘No army’ brand proves a political handicap

This content was published on Sep 27, 2013 While there was little chance that conscription would be scrapped, no one could foresee the thumping defeat inflicted on the anti-army association last Sunday. Almost three out of four voters came out against its initiative to end the draft and introduce a professional army of volunteers, compared to one-third of voters who supported doing away…

Ticino burka vote could spawn others

This content was published on Sep 25, 2013 On September 22, Italian-speaking Ticino became the first Swiss canton to accept such a ban, with more than 65 per cent of voters in favour. This result has boosted the hopes of those backing a future nationwide initiative. “The text is ready. It is similar to one put forward by canton Aargau and rejected by…

Media demand army reforms following vote

This content was published on Sep 23, 2013 Media across the country questioned whether a long running political campaign to scrap the militia system had now run out of steam. But they also rammed home the point that a growing number of men are finding ways of wriggling out of the system while the army itself was criticised as employing outdated tactics. Most…

Swiss voters endorse army conscription

This content was published on Sep 22, 2013 Defence Minister Ueli Maurer said the defeat of the proposal by the pacifist Switzerland without an Army group to end conscription and introduce a professional army of volunteers was a vote of confidence in the current militia system. “It is a yes to the army and to more security,” he told a news conference on Sunday.…

Burka ban approved in Italian-speaking Switzerland

This content was published on Sep 22, 2013 According to official estimates, only about 100 women in Switzerland wear burkas. The full-body cloaks worn by some Muslim women are few and far between in the southern Swiss canton. And yet about 65% of voters in the Italian-speaking canton voted in favour of the change to the law. The Ticino initiative did not explicitly…

Unions stage protest for fair work conditions

This content was published on Sep 21, 2013 Leaders of the Trade Union Federation criticised the growing gap between the rich and the poor in the country and political attempts to undermine labour standards. In their speeches in the three national languages German, French and Italian, outside parliament on Saturday, they also slammed planned public spending cuts as well as tax breaks for…

House rejects support for paedophilia initiative

This content was published on Sep 18, 2013 The initiative, brought by the Marche Blanche (White March) group, would amend the Swiss constitution to ensure that “persons who are convicted because they have affected the sexual integrity of a child or a dependent person permanently lose the right to pursue a professional or volunteer activity with minors or dependents.” Critics of the amendment…

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Motorway tax price hike causes controversy

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Fighting over tax breaks and family role models

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Voters urged to reject cap on executive pay

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‘No army’ brand proves a political handicap

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Ticino burka vote could spawn others

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Media demand army reforms following vote

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Swiss voters endorse army conscription

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Burka ban approved in Italian-speaking Switzerland

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Unions stage protest for fair work conditions

More

House rejects support for paedophilia initiative

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