Head of Swiss business federation criticises government

Economiesuisse criticises government, 'does not even have a priority list' Keystone-SDA

After six years, Christoph Mäder will soon step down as chair of economiesuisse, the Swiss Business Federation. He does so with a warning about Switzerland's ability to meet future challenges.

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In his farewell review, he paints a picture of blocked reforms and a political class that he says prefers to postpone difficult decisions rather than take responsibility for making choices.

‘If we are no longer able to find compromises, we will soon have a systemic problem,’ says the 66-year-old in an interview published on Friday in the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ), summarising his fears that the inability to engage in dialogue is undermining the foundations of the Swiss political model. A model that, according to him, now suffers from a “crisis of intermediaries” – parties, media and associations – increasingly replaced in public discussion by the voices of polarising extremism.

At the heart of his analysis is an attack on the executive’s way of governing. “The Federal Council at the moment only produces patches, because it has no majorities,” he argues. “That is why, with the help of parliament, it keeps putting off the big issues: federal finances, national defence, old-age provision, the relationship with Europe.”

For Mäder, the problem is not the absence of solutions, but the lack of political will to implement them. The proof? “In Switzerland, the Federal Council does not even have a clear list of priorities. Why? Because it does not want to.”

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An accusation that the lawyer argues with concrete examples, starting with the policy of neutrality. After the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, in his opinion, a crucial opportunity to update the doctrine was missed: Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis proposed a cooperative conception of neutrality.

“The Federal Council has dismissed this important discussion in a way that I consider irresponsible. In my opinion, the term ‘cooperative’ describes nothing more than the policy of neutrality that we have always pursued. This refusal to discuss is unacceptable’.

Relationship with Brussels

Now the right-wing Swiss People’s Party initiative on neutrality looms. “At the moment, according to the polls, the support of the population is still moderate, but we have to be careful. A lot can still happen until the vote. The actual discussion has not yet started. We have to explain to the voters that the initiative does not consolidate the status quo, but represents a step backwards towards a rigid, inflexible and mechanistic neutrality that has never been at the heart of our policy.”

Another crucial issue is the relationship with Brussels, on which Mäder warns against easy illusions. “The People’s Party likes to claim that Switzerland is so important for the EU that, even in the event of a no to the agreements, it would still grant us special treatment. This is completely unfounded,” he argues. ‘The patience of the Europeans may have its clear limits.”

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On the domestic front, the outgoing president of Economiesuisse criticises the failure to reform public spending. With around 60% of the federal budget constrained by law, any attempt at consolidation becomes, in his view, a chimera. “If we are not finally willing to include constrained expenditure in the discussion, we will continue to have only patches,” he says. “We cannot continue to decide on new expenditure – like now for the 13th monthly pension payment or the financing of the army – and at the same time claim that the budget is ‘tied’ and therefore untouchable.” For Mäder, this means “losing the power of real political action”.

And it is precisely on the army dossier that the former member of the Syngenta management uses harsh words. While Poland exceeds 4% of its gross domestic product (GDP) as defence expenditure, Switzerland is still arguing for an increase to 1%. “It’s a declaration of bankruptcy,” he complains.

Risk for direct democracy

Criticism is also levelled at the way people work, with Switzerland being described as the “part-time world champion”.

In order to maintain prosperity, what is needed, according to Mäder, is “an honest discussion about working hours, weekly working hours and the length of working life”. And here he comes back at the government. ‘The fact that the Federal Council has postponed the topic of increasing the retirement age until after 2040 is a scandal. One cannot simply ignore demographic developments.”

Against this background of deadlock, Mäder sees a systemic risk for direct democracy. “Many people are overwhelmed by the many traumatic events happening in the world and therefore decide to become disinterested. This leads to a decrease in understanding of the Swiss political system and a decline in interest in political engagement. In our direct democracy, this vacuum is filled by populist poles,” he warns. And this is in his view even more dangerous than in a representative democracy.

Christoph Mäder has been president of economiesuisse since 2020. He will step down in September, after two terms of office. His successor will be Silvan Wildhaber, CEO of the family-owned St Gallen textile company Filtex.

Adapted from Italian by AI/ts

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