Foreign tourists will have to pay transit tax to drive through Switzerland, and opinion polls predict a close outcome in the anti-immigration referendum on June 14th — these are among the news that The Local reported this week. You can catch up on everything in this weekly roundup.
Foreign tourists will have to pay transit tax to drive through Switzerland
The aim of this measure , which just passed through the Parliament, is to reduce peak traffic on the national road network with a traffic-dependent transit fee that foreign motorists will have to pay if they merely transit through Switzerland without staying here.
However, many areas still remain unresolved – for instance, what constitutes ‘transit’ and what constitutes a ‘stay’ would have to be clearly defined, along with how the registration of border crossings will technically work, and how the amounts of tax will be set and collected.
READ MORE: What we know about Switzerland’s new transit tax for foreign drivers
Opinion polls predict a close outcome in the anti-immigration referendum on June 14th
The latest survey reveals that a very narrow majority of voters – 47 percent – are currently against the right-wing initiative seeking to limit immigration from the European Union.
On the other hand,, 45 percent support the move.
As it stands, the 8 percent of voters who have not yet made up their mind on this issue, will ultimately decide which way the referendum goes.
READ ALSO: Is voter support for Switzerland’s anti-immigraton initiative waning?
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EU treaties are not detrimental to Switzerland, expert says
Though the populist Swiss People’s Party (SVP) are sounding the alarm about the potentially disastrous consequences that the new package of agreements between Bern and Brussels will have on Switzerland, experts deny this claim.
To the contrary, Francesco Maiani, expert in EU Migration Law and Policies, tol The Local that the SVP’s warnings are vastly exaggerated, and Switzerland will still retain its sovergneity, while benefiting from bilateral treaties.
READ MORE: Will the new EU treaty really harm Switzerland? https://www.thelocal.ch/20260318/vastly-exaggerated-would-the-new-eu-treaty-really-harm-switzerland
Racist flyer handed to foreign resident on a Swiss train
A Spanish national travelling on a train in Switzerland was handed a flyer with the message, “Foreigner, shut up.”
The leaflet featured the logo of Swiss Federal Railways (SBB), but the company has immediately distanced itself from this flyer, condemning “all forms of racism and discrimination in the strongest possible terms.”
“Such ideas have no place on SBB trains,” company spokesperson Moritz Weisskopf said. “The SBB stands for an open and inclusive Switzerland where all passengers – regardless of their origin – should feel safe and welcome.”
READ MORE: Foreign resident ‘shocked’ after being given xenophobic flyer on Swiss train
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Mountain cable car crash kills the sole passenger
A cable car lift crashed to the ground in the Swiss resort of Engelberg, as gale-force winds swept through the area.
A 61-year-old local resident, the cabin’s sole occupant, was killed when the cable car she was in tumbled several times after falling from the cable before coming to a sudden stop at the bottom of the slope.
READ MORE: One dead after cable car crashes down mountainside in Swiss Alps
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The 300-franc health insurance deductible to be eliminated, higher one will replace it
The Federal Council has made a move towards raising the country’s minimum health insurance deductible by 100 francs – from 300 to 400 francs.
This measure is meant to dissuade the public from seeking non-urgent medical treatments – that is, to encourage the population to practice more restraint in their use of healthcare services, thus lowering the rising cost of the health system
READ MORE: Minimum Swiss health insurance deductible could rise by 100 francs
