Report: Bilateral accords with EU would boost Swiss economy

Switzerland’s bilateral accords with the European Union, which still have to be ratified, would benefit the Swiss economy and lead to a long-term increase in Gross Domestic Product of up to 2 percent, according to a report released on Friday.

Switzerland’s bilateral accords with the European Union, which still have to be ratified, would benefit the Swiss economy and lead to a long-term increase in Gross Domestic Product of up to 2 percent, according to a report released on Friday.

The findings of the report, commissioned with several others to assess the impact of further Swiss integration into Europe, came only a few days after Switzerland and the 15-member European Union formally signed a comprehensive package of bilateral agreements.

The accords cover economic and technical cooperation, public procurement, mutual acceptance of diplomas and licences, agricultural trade, aviation issues, road and rail traffic and the free movement of people. The accords must still be ratified by the parliaments of all EU member states and Switzerland.

The idea of free movement of people has caused some concern among the Swiss since many fear that Switzerland will be flooded with cheap labour from abroad and many Swiss might lose their jobs.

But the new study found that unemployment would not increase – even though the salaries of high-skill jobs will likely come under pressure. That pressure, according to the report, would lead to a narrowing of the gap between high-paying and less well-paid jobs in Switzerland.

The bilateral accords will increase government spending by about SFr620 million ($413 million), the Swiss authorities admit. But they argue that the economic benefit for the country will be much higher.

The report also addressed the economic impact of full EU membership.

The cost of moving toward full EU membership, according to the report, could be kept at a relatively low level if membership payments were increased gradually and if value added tax could be raised to 15 percent over a period of time. That, however, would mean effectively doubling Switzerland’s current VAT rate.


Sources: sda-ats, apd