In the coming weeks, debates on the new batch of Swiss-EU agreements will begin in the parliamentary committees. So what are the key points of the discussions?
On March 13th, the Federal Council has sent the package of agreements it had concluded with Brussels in December 2024 – the so-called Bilateral III – to the Parliament for deliberations.
While the complete package covers 94 agreements outlined on 1,000 pages, some points are considered particularly contentious and are expected to spark heated debates among the deputies.
Here’s an overview of some of them.
Immigration
More precisely, the debate will focus on the freedom of movement as well as the rights of EU nationals to receive social assistance in Switzerland without impacting their residency status.
Currently, Swiss law provides for the possibility of downgrading or revoking altogether the permit of a person receiving welfare.
Being dependant on social aid also doesn’t bode well for people planning to apply for naturalisation; they are not eligible to apply for Swiss citizenship, unless they repay the amount fully.
Why is this provision controversial?
Mostly because the populist Swiss People’s Party (SVP) is against giving foreigners more rights, and also against immigrants receiving social aid.
In fact, it is against immigration in general and has spearheaded a referendum, ‘No to 10 million’, seeking to drastically curb the number of EU citizens allowed to work in Switzerland.
READ MORE: What exactly does the Swiss ‘no to 10 million’ anti-immigration proposal aim to do?
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Adoption of EU Law
Under the terms of the Bilateral III, Switzerland would continuously have to adopt any legislative amendments made at the EU level.
Debates around this issue are bound to be heated, especially since this is a particularly sore point for the SVP: for the party, this represents an irrevocable loss of Switzerland’s sovereignty and submission to Brussels.
The Federal Council assured, however, that every act of legal adoption would be subject to standard Swiss procedures – including the possibility of a referendum.
Experts agree.
In an interview with The Local, Francesco Maiani, professor of European Law at the University of Lausanne and expert in EU Migration Law and Policies, refuted the SVP’s claim, calling it “vastly exaggerated.”
“Switzerland will still have the ultimate right to decide whether it wants to take on new EU laws,” he said.
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Dispute Settlement
This provision states that if a conflict arises between Switzerland and the EU, it would be decided by an arbitration tribunal composed of an equal number of representatives from both sides.
However, if the dispute concerns EU legislation, the matter would be handled by the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU), whose interpretation would subsequently be binding in Switzerland.
This point too goes against the SVP’s stance of preserving Switzerland’s autonomy and not bowing to Brussels, and it is likely to generate a lot of noise in the Parliament.
Electricity supply
A new agreement grants Switzerland access to the EU electricity market.
It would give Swiss households and businesses the freedom to choose their electricity provider (and pay lower rates), which is currently not the case. as they receive their electricity from a local service provider at regulated prices.
For the SVP, this too is a source of controversy.
It claims on its website that the agreement “poses an existential threat to Switzerland” because the country “will lose control over its vital infrastructure.”
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What’s the next step?
After the parliamentary committees finish debating, the legislative package will be handed first to the Councilof States and then to the National Council for further deliberations.
Ultimately, it will be up to the voters to have their say, though it is not yet known whether this will happen via a mandatory or optional referendum.
READ MORE: How will Switzerland benefit from new pact with the European Union?
