The hard-right initiative seeking to curb the number of foreigners employed in Switzerland would have dire consequences for the country, its opponents have told The Local.
The ‘No to 10 million people’ initiative launched by the hard-right Swiss People’s Party (SVP), which is expected to be brought to the ballot box in November, seeks to drastically reduce the influx of foreigners to Switzerland, so that the country’s population doesn’t exceed the 10-million mark, which the populist party claims will overburden key infrastructure, such as housing, public transport, the health system, and schools.
The proposal stipulates that “Switzerland’s permanent resident population must not exceed ten million people before 2050. From 2050 onwards, the Federal Council may adjust this limit annually.”
Currently, the country’s population stands at just over 9 million, including nearly 2.5 million foreign nationals – that is, over 27 percent of the population.
The initiative is targeting the nationals of the European Union and EFTA (Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein) because, unlike citizens of third countries, they have an unlimited access to the country’s labour market.
READ ALSO: What exactly does the Swiss ‘no to 10 million’ anti-immigration proposal aim to do?
Advertisement
‘Erosion of Swiss identity’
Interviewed by The Local in 2025, an SVP deputy Yvan Pahud, one of the initiative’s instigators, said that limiting immigration is essential for Switzerland’s future.
If the proposal is not accepted, “this would mean opening the floodgates to even more uncontrolled immigration,” he said.
“This would cause a terrible strain on infrastructure, a loss of our quality of life, and the gradual erosion of our Swiss identity.”
‘Catastrophic consequences’
But even more voices are raised against the initiative – even from political parties which, in many instances, doesn’t agree with the government on a number of issues.
JUSO, the German acronym for ‘young socialists’, is one of them.
Its stance is that immigration “is beneficial in many ways: it helps combat labour shortages, stimulates innovation, and contributes to demographic stability.”
SVP’s initiative, on the other hand, “is an aggressive hate campaign blaming immigrants for a multitude of societal problems,” the party’s vice-president Nathalie Ruoss told The Local.
Specifically, the SVP “blames immigrants for rising living costs, problems in the education and healthcare systems, traffic jams, and climate change, to name a few,” she pointed out. “These narratives are racist and stigmatise immigrants, attacking directly the diversity of our society.”
If the initiative wins the support of voters, the consequences will be serious and far-reaching, Ruoss said.
“Adopting the initiative would require Switzerland to withdraw from several international treaties. This would isolate the country internationally and destroy existing relations with other states,” she noted. “Switzerland would lose access to the international market, which would have catastrophic consequences for its people.”
Advertisement
‘Extremely dangerous’
Switzerland’s trade unions, which represent the right of workers – both Swiss and foreign – are also against the SVP’s proposal.
“This initiative jeopardises prosperity and security in Switzerland,” Natalie Imboden, who is responsible for campaigns and communication at UNIA, the country’s largest trade union, told The Local in an interview.
“It would lead to the termination of the bilateral agreements, putting wages and jobs under pressure. Wage protection and wage controls will be eliminated,” since both of them are directly tied to the AFMP.
“This initiative is therefore an attack on wage protection, working conditions, and employee rights,” she added. “As such, it is extremely dangerous for everyone working in Switzerland.”
“Overall, terminating the bilateral agreements would jeopardise wages, jobs, exports, research, and the freedom of movement of the population,” Imboden said. “Market access for Switzerland’s exports to the EU would be hampered.”
Further, since the initiative aims to restrict the influx of foreigners into Switzerland’s labour market, “it will exacerbate the shortage of doctors, nurses, and other in-demand workers.”
Imboden also pointed to another significant consequence of curbed immigration: fewer people would pay into Switzerland’s social insurance scheme, which would negatively affect future pensioners.
In the political arena, the SVP stands alone in its support of the immigration-curbing initiative.
On behalf of the Federal Council, Justice and Police minister Beat Jans has pointed out that such a move “would isolate Switzerland internationally and create significant insecurity,” especially as it could mean renegotiating or even ending the Free Movement of People agreement (AFMP) between Switzerland and the EU,
“The British have experienced what it means to leave access to the single market and free movement,” he said, “And the majority of the country now regrets Brexit. We must learn from this lesson.”
Does this initiative have a chance of being approved by voters?
It is too early to say, but there are, nevertheless, some indications that the odds of success are good.
According to an opinion poll carried out by the Tamedia media group in December, the majority of voters are in favour of the ‘No Switzerland of 10 million’ initiative.
Concretely, 48 percent of respondents back this move, while 41 percent do not.
READ ALSO: Latest polls reveal Swiss anti-immigration initiative has strong voter support
