Switzerland is one step closer to getting a direct train link to London; MP wants foreign nationals to serve in the Swiss military; and more news in our Monday roundup.
Direct train between Switzerland and London is a step closet to becoming reality
In March, the national rail company, SBB, officially committed to creating a direct rail connection with the UK capital.
Last week, Transport Minister Albert Rösti, travelled to London to sign an agreement to that effect with his British counterpart Heidi Alexander.
With this step, “we are establishing the basis to jointly examine concrete next steps,” Rösti said.
This will require check-in terminals at departure stations in both countries, since the UK is not a member of the Schengen area, plus an agreement between Switzerland, France and the United Kingdom.
MP wants foreigners to serve in the Swiss army
Despite his party’s longstanding anti-immigration stance, deputy Erich Vontobel from the Swiss People’s Party (SVP) proposes integrating young foreigners, including refugees, into the ranks of the Swiss military to alleviate the shortage of soldiers.
The existing legislation allows only Swiss citizens to serve.
However, this proposal is sparking opposition even from within his own party.
“Soldiers must be integrated into Switzerland; they must live our values,” said Mauro Tuena, a SVP a security policy specialist “You never know what ideologies foreigners might represent.”
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Ahead of Eurovision, Basel hotels are disappointed not to be fully booked
The Eurovision Song Contest (ESC) is officially beginning on Tuesday, May 13th, though the pre-ESC festivities are already underway throughout Basel.
But not everyone in the city is celebrating: hotels, which expected to be full by now are, at 85 percent occupancy rate, only partially booked.
“We thought we would be bursting,” said Franz-Xaver Leonhardt, president of the area’s hotel association.
Very high prices charged by the hotels during the Eurovision are thought to discourage bookings, even though the association recommended that prices be increased only moderately during the ESC.
“However, not everyone is adhering to it,” Leonhardt said.
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Foreign brands profit from the Matterhorn logo
The iconic Swiss mountain, the Matterhorn, appears on products around the world, and not only on the Toblerone chocolate; it is also pictured on American pipelines and condoms.
The tourist office in Zermatt, a resort which lies at the foot of the Matterhorn. is trying to regulate its use.
It is not, however, totally opposed to the depictions of the famous mountain on some commercial merchandise, said Daniel Luggen president of Zermant’s tourist body.
“Actually, it’s good that the Matterhorn is associated with many positive characteristics and is therefore used as a selling point,” Ludden pointed out.
“But if cigarettes will be sold under this name, we obviously won’t like it,” he said.
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