Basel parliament gives the ‘thumbs up’ to the planned train from Basel to Sweden; Switzerland’s population has a better level of English than previously; and more news in our Thursday roundup.
Basel-City parliament votes in favour of the night train to Malmö
The national railways company (SBB) is planning to launch, from April 15th, 2026, a night train from Basel SBB to Malmö in Sweden, via Germany and Denmark.
The National Council and the Council of States still need to approve this 47-million-franc project, but the Basel parliament has already shown its support for it: on Wednesday, local MPs have voted in favour of the new train route.
READ ALSO: Swiss national railway unveils new night train to Sweden via Denmark and Germany
The English language proficiency is rising in Switzerland
The international education company EF Education First uses the EF English Proficiency Index (EF EPI) to assess the language skills of over 2.2 million adults in 123 countries where English is not the primary language.
With 564 points, English skills in Switzerland are rated as ‘good’ in the 2025 ranking.
The country only achieved 30th place globally and 22nd in Europe – but it is nevertheless an improvement of one place over the previous edition.
Also, for the first time in four years, the English skills among Switzerland’s population have improved, after having declined for four consecutive years.
READ ALSO: Where in Switzerland will you find the best and worst levels of English?
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Housing shortage: Government to limit ‘self-serving’ construction delays
Abusive appeals filed against various construction projects have led to delays of several years, further exacerbating the housing shortage.
In fact, according to a study from the Federal Housing Office, objections are the most frequent reason why the construction of new housing is delayed or even halted.
To prevent such unfounded practices in the future, the Federal Council said it wants to explore the possibility of enshrining penalties for such appeals in law.
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Job losses at yet another UN organisation in Geneva
Due to budget cuts by the United States, 300 jobs at the Geneva office of the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) will be relocated to Rome, with only about 100 employees remaining in Geneva.
This move is the latest in a series of job cuts that have hit international agencies in Geneva, including thousands of positions at the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the International Labour Organization (ILO), and the World Health Organization (WHO) , among others
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