Switzerland

Many market participants expect falling prices on the Swiss real estate market. According to a survey by the consulting firm KPMG, the outlook is clouded by interest rate risks and regulation.

The experts at KPMG came to this conclusion based on the survey results for the Swiss Real Estate Sentiment Index. According to the information, this reflects the expectations of professional investors, developers, consultants and evaluators about the Swiss real estate investment market.

Accordingly, the latest survey resulted in negative price expectations for all segments, locations and regions. According to the survey published on Monday, price expectations in central locations such as Zurich were negative for the first time. Those surveyed cited interest rate risks and regulation as the main reasons for the expected decline in real estate values.

The approximately 350 survey participants were also rather disillusioned when it came to sustainability. Only 18% of those surveyed believe that the net zero target for 2050 can be achieved.

The gloomy outlook is also shared by financial experts. For example, the analysts at Baader Helvea write in a comment on the KPMG survey that they are sticking to their own “cautious” assessment of the Swiss real estate market. From an investor's perspective, real estate companies with "lower-risk business models and conservative balance sheets" should be preferred.

Despite production of mRNA for the Covid-19 vaccine ending at the Lonza site in Visp, Moderna is maintaining its strategic partnership with the Valais company, assures the boss of the American group. This ten-year partnership was signed in 2020.

“We will discuss possible collaborations as our messenger RNA portfolio materialises,” declared Moderna’s CEO, Stéphane Bancel, in an interview with Le Temps.

He explains that Moderna is "right-sizing its industrial footprint and supply base to accelerate its gross margin expansion toward its long-term goal of 75-80%." Demand for the vaccine has fallen by 66%, he notes.

The company based in Cambridge, near Boston, in the United States state of Massachusetts plans to absorb demand for mRNA at its Norwood site over the next two years.

In 2025, Moderna plans to expand its capabilities at its new mRNA manufacturing facilities in the United Kingdom, Canada and Australia. Only the manufacturing partnership with Rovi in ​​Spain will be maintained. “At the beginning of this year, we opened a new centre of excellence in Madrid,” notes Stéphane Bancel.

This centre allows analytical tests to be carried out to certify batches of mRNA vaccines for markets outside the United States, he adds. “It makes Spain the largest production centre covering all stages of the Moderna vaccine production chain outside the United States.”

The Zurich Film Festival is ending its partnership with chocolate maker Läderach.

According to the organisers, this is a reaction to a documentary by Swiss public television SRF about child abuse accusations at a public school. The SRF documentary broadcast on Thursday "stirred everyone up", the film festival said in a statement.

After an "open exchange", the festival and the chocolate company "jointly decided to end their partnership".

Although there were no accusations against the current Läderach management, "the suffering of the alleged victims is associated with the family and company name", wrote the management of the festival, which will start next week. Läderach would have been a partner of the festival for the first time this year. Corporal punishment

Jürg Läderach, patron of the chocolatier until 2018, co-founded the evangelical school "Domino Servite" (Serve the Lord) in Kaltbrunn in canton St Gallen in 1995. In the SRF programme “Dok”, former pupils talked about beatings with belts and living in a climate of fear in the religious institution.

Johannes Läderach, head of the company based in Bilten, in canton Glarus, since 2018, told Swiss newspaper group Tamedia that he visited this school himself. He could confirm the climate of fear. He was not been beaten there.

He was burdened by the fact that he wasn't able to prevent the abuse. A 2019 investigation triggered a changed within the Free Church. The church leadership resigned. He separated from this denomination.

A landslide buried the Calanca road between the municipalities of Buseno and Rossa in canton Graubünden on Friday evening, RSI reported.

Around 300 cubic metres of debris broke loose after heavy rainfall and now the valley is cut off from the outside world. Around 350 people are isolated, but no one was injured.

The rocks are estimated to have fallen onto the road from a height of about 200 metres at around 11 pm on Friday evening, Sven Fehler of the cantonal civil engineering office told the Keystone-SDA news agency.

After authorities flew over the air and inspected it, experts did not expect any further demolitions. Therefore, the clean-up work could already begin. However, the road in the Calanca Valley will be closed at least until Sunday evening.

As soon as the debris is removed from the road, it will be repaired and if everything goes according to plan, the authorities will be able to reopen the Calanca road on Sunday evening at the earliest.

A further assessment of the situation followed on Sunday morning. The demolition site and especially the rock next to it will then be monitored with radar, Fehler added.

Anne-Geneviève Bütikofer, director of the Swiss Hospital Association, H+, is opening the door to a single health insurance scheme. "The pressure is so great that a revolution seems inevitable," she says.

A single health insurer may not be the right solution, "but it's worth considering", said Anne-Geneviève Bütikofer in an interview with Swiss newspaper Sonntags Blick on Sunday.

"If 2.5 million people change health insurer every year, at a cost of CHF800 ($882) to CHF1,000 per change, we have already found our potential savings of several billion. The discussions surrounding the single health insurance scheme are therefore legitimate," she said. Higher hospital charges

Despite the high cost of healthcare for the population, "we are calling for a 5% increase in all hospital charges", says Anne-Geneviève Bütikofer. "The rise in prices must finally be taken into account.”

According to the director, however, these increases should not be reflected in health insurance premiums. "I wonder whether we are financing the right things in the system with the right sources of funding."

"Today, all hospital services are funded by compulsory health insurance," she adds, stressing that there are no additional sources of remuneration for new expenditure.

Following a 2023 Federal Court ruling, canton Basel City changed its practice towards begging and expelled eleven beggars from Eastern Europe from Switzerland.

According to a ruling of the Federal Supreme Court of March 2023, anyone who is in Switzerland to beg is not allowed to stay. Basel City is now implementing this ruling and police patrols are specifically looking for beggars.

If the police patrols meet beggars from a European Union (EU) or the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) country, they play them a voice message - if possible in their mother tongue - telling them that they have no right of residence if they are in Switzerland to beg.

The new practice is having an effect. Currently, an estimated 15 to 20 people from Eastern Europe are begging in Basel, says a police officer on begging patrol. Before the ruling and the authorities' crackdown, there were considerably more, about 170 people, he says. Eleven expulsions

Since the start of these operations, almost 50 people have been played such voice messages, says Adrian Plachesi, spokesman for Basel police. "So far, 46 informal requests have been issued by the staff of the cantonal police of Basel."

But the authorities have not only issued summonses. "Furthermore, 11 formal expulsions have been ordered," Plachesi continued. People who were caught begging again after the warning had to leave Switzerland.

If the police catch someone for the third time, the person in question risks an entry ban. However, this has not happened so far, according to Plachesi.

Controversial interpretation of the ruling

The Basel authorities' approach is new. Before the Federal Court ruling, beggars from Eastern Europe were allowed to enter the country. It was assumed that they had a right to stay for three months.

However, in March the Federal Supreme Court made a "clarification", according to Rahel Walser of the Basel Justice and Security Department. "Destitute people from EU or EFTA countries who only come to Switzerland to beg do not fulfil the entry conditions," she says. "They are neither considered recipients of services nor gainfully employed."

With the ruling, the cantons would therefore have the possibility to classify both the entry and stay of these people as "unlawful if they beg".

However, this interpretation of the ruling is controversial. "Are you now no longer allowed to enter or stay in Switzerland if you are affected by poverty?" asks Christian von Wartburg of Democratic Lawyers Switzerland. "Ultimately, one is then forced to ask for alms in order to make a living." This question has not been conclusively clarified, despite the Federal Supreme Court ruling.

Bern’s harsh practices

However, Basel authorities are not the only ones to take rigorous action against beggars from Eastern Europe. Canton Bern is doing something similar, since it has been turning them away since 2018. Until last summer, Bern's practice was considered particularly harsh. In the meantime, Bern sees its own approach confirmed by the Federal Supreme Court.

The president of the Swiss Bishops' Conference admits mistakes in dealing with abuse cases in the Catholic Church and advocates for the abolition of celibacy and the admission of women to the priesthood.

In an interview with the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) am SonntagExternal link, Bishop Felix Gmür also said that the Catholic Church has been active in the topic of abuse cases for a long time.

The prevailing conditions must be questioned, the Swiss Bishops’ Conference president explains. In his view, the time is ripe to abolish celibacy and to allow women access to the priesthood.

At the beginning of his time as bishop, Gmür emphasised the legally correct conduct in cases of abuse, he said in the interview with NZZ am Sonntag. The victim's perspective had been neglected in the process. "In this respect, I have changed my perspective over time”.

Gmür is in favour of an external monitoring of the church investigation into the cases of abuse, as demanded by the Roman Catholic Central Conference.

Better distribution of power

In general, power in the Church must be better distributed, Gmür said. "I will lobby in Rome for the Church to decentralise." A new sexual morality is needed, together with the possibility to make regulations regionally.

The Swiss Bishops’ Conference has decided to set up an ecclesiastical criminal and disciplinary tribunal for the Roman Catholic Church in Switzerland. However, this still has to be discussed with the Pope, since such tribunal is not provided for in canon law, said Gmür. However, the proceedings under church law are subordinate to state law, "so they do not replace secular criminal proceedings."

Women should join the priesthood

Part of coming to terms with the situation is questioning the prevailing conditions. "Celibacy means that I am available to God. But I believe that this sign is no longer understood by society today," says Gmür. "The time is ripe to abolish celibacy. I have no problem at all imagining married priests."

The exclusion of women from priestly ordination should also fall, he says. "The subordination of women in the Catholic Church is incomprehensible to me. Changes are needed there," Gmür said. He added that the Church is "not yet where we need it to be" when it comes to the ban on concubinage for employees.

Nick Hayek, the head of Swatch Group AG, says he regrets the loss of Credit Suisse as it will open Switzerland to more foreign lenders.

The watchmaker is now working more closely with smaller cantonal banks such as Zurcher Kantonalbank, Hayek said in an interview with newspaper SonntagsBlick.

“With the decision to give up the Credit Suisse brand, UBS has now opened the doors to players from abroad. We need at least two banks,” Swatch Group CEO Hayek told the newspaper.

UBS Group AG should have listed Credit Suisse, retained a 30% to 40% ownership and asked major Swiss companies like Swatch, Schindler Holding AG and EMS-Chemie Holding AG to take stakes for the rest, he said.

Still, the UBS takeover of Credit Suisse was the best solution as a bank “with weak leadership would have fallen victim to speculators” according to Hayek.

Hayek said he was pleased that Sergio Ermotti had returned to lead the combined banks as “he is Swiss and understands our culture.”

Generic drugs will become cheaper than original drugs and patients’ co-payment will increase if they choose the more expensive product. This is how the Swiss government plans to save CHF250 million ($275 million) a year.

The government has adopted the revisions to the Ordinance on Health Insurance, the Ordinance on Health Care Services and the Ordinance on Medicinal Products, which will come into force on January 1, 2024.

The focus is on the sale of generic drugs and biosimilar medicines. These equally effective and less expensive drugs are used less often in Switzerland than abroad. Increasing the price gap to the original

The Swiss government is now intervening in the pricing of certain generic drugs and biosimilar medicines with chemical active ingredients because they are about twice as expensive as abroad. The House of Representatives rejected the introduction of a reference price system in 2020 and instructed the government to make adjustments at the ordinance level and enable savings.

Now, for generic drugs of active substances with a market volume of CHF4 million to CHF8 million, the price gap to the original preparation will be increased from 30% to 40%. The price gaps applied in the triennial review will be increased by 5%.

When reviewing generic drugs for which there is no longer an original preparation with the same active ingredient in the list of specialities, a therapeutic cross-comparison with other generic drugs will be carried out to assess cost-effectiveness. At the moment, these generic drugs cannot be reviewed.

The Swiss government is also acting on biosimilar medicines. Up to now, these medicines have been included in the list of specialities if they are at least 25% cheaper than the original biological preparation. In the context of the triennial review, they must be 10% cheaper.

Switzerland should join the G7 Climate Club to reduce CO2 emissions in industry, Swiss government spokesperson André Simonazzi announced.

Simonazzi explained that the government has issued a mandate that will allow Switzerland to join the Climate Club during the United Nations (UN) Climate Change Conference in Dubai on November 30. Swiss participation is possible as long as it has no financial consequences, Simonazzi specified.

The idea of the Climate Club originated from German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, during the German G7 presidency in 2022. The club is supposed to contribute to the achievement of the Paris Agreement’s goal to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees Celsius. The club was launched in December last year.

Three pillars of the club

According to a joint statement, the Climate Club will be based on three pillars: promoting ambitious and transparent climate action, jointly transforming industries to advance decarbonisation, and strengthening international efforts through partnerships and cooperation.

The last point is to safeguard companies from countries with ambitious climate targets, by avoiding unfair competition from those with low environmental standards.

In addition to the G7 states of Germany, France, Italy, Canada, the United Kingdom, Japan and the United States (US) and the European Union (EU) Commission, Argentina, Chile, Denmark, Indonesia, Colombia, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Singapore and Uruguay are also participating, according to a German government website.

As an intergovernmental forum, the Climate Club is to be open to all countries committed to the full implementation of the Paris Agreement.

During training for an air show in Roanne, in central France, a Swiss Army Super Puma helicopter was damaged last Saturday.

According to the Armed Forces Defence Group, the incident happened during an air manoeuvre in a training session in preparation for a planned air show on September 17, but no one was injured.

During the single figure "Screwdriver Down", there was an unusual deviation from the intended flight attitude, which was immediately corrected by the helicopter crew, said the Defence Group.

During this incident, strong forces acted on the helicopter. However, the two pilots were able to land the Super Puma safely at the intended location. Standard checks were carried out on the helicopter after the flight. According to the statement, these checks, and an initial analysis of the data from the helicopter in Switzerland and at the manufacturer's indicate major damage to the helicopter.

Flight demonstration cancelled

As a result, the planned flight demonstration of the Super Puma on Sunday has been cancelled. The incident is being investigated by the air force's flight safety department. The military justice system is also conducting a preliminary hearing.

The single figure "Screwdriver Down" is a demanding flight manoeuvre, the Defence Group added. After a horizontal hover at a safe altitude, the nose is brought down vertically and flown with a complete rotation around its own axis.

Until the technical and aeronautical checks and examinations have been completed, this single manoeuvre will not be performed in the upcoming planned flight demonstrations for safety reasons.

It is not yet possible to estimate the extent of the damage to the helicopter. The helicopter is currently still in France and is being prepared for transport back to Switzerland.

The Swiss Bishops' Conference wants to set up an ecclesiastical criminal and disciplinary tribunal for the Roman Catholic Church in Switzerland.

This decision follows the cases of sexual abuse revealed by a study conducted by the University of Zurich.

Swiss civil criminal law would continue to take precedence, and the criminal prosecution authorities would be compulsorily involved in all cases of abuse or other offences committed in an ecclesiastical context.

Such ecclesiastical tribunal would also deal with the necessary sanctions in the event of a breach of ecclesiastical law, according to a press release issued by the Swiss Bishops' Conference on Saturday morning.

In order to establish this national tribunal, the Swiss bishops will hold talks with Vatican officials in the coming weeks.

Further measures

The European Trade Union Confederation (ETUC), the Roman Catholic Central Conference of Switzerland and the Roman Catholic religious communities of Switzerland commissioned the study of the University of Zurich and have taken additional measures. These include the continuation of this study by two historians.

A national service will be set up to collect reports from victims. In addition, the members of the ETUC have signed a personal commitment to ensure that all ecclesiastical archives under their responsibility remain accessible and that no documents are destroyed.

The ETUC has also decided to introduce an in-depth psychological assessment procedure for seminarians, novitiate candidates and other pastoral workers. This assessment procedure already exists in many regions, but it will now be standardised and professionalised on a national scale and will be compulsory everywhere. The personal files of all pastoral staff will be professionalised. These measures should be in place by the end of 2024 at the latest.

Abuses documented

In their pilot study published on September 12, the researchers from the University of Zurich documented at least 1,002 cases of sexual abuse committed by members of the Catholic clergy and religious since 1950. According to the historians, this is just the tip of the iceberg, as most cases have not been reported and the documents have been destroyed.

The abuses were committed by 510 people out of 921 victims. Nearly 56% of the victims were men and 74% were minors. With a few exceptions, the perpetrators were men.

The report documents acts of abuse ranging from problematic crossing of boundaries to the most serious systematic abuse, involving rape, which lasted for years. Many cases have been hushed up, covered up or played down by the Catholic Church, said one of the study's authors.

More than 100,000 people have approved and signed a popular initiative calling for restriction of fireworks to combat air pollution and nuisance.

There is therefore a good chance that the initiative will succeed and be put to a vote, reports Swiss public broadcaster RTS.

"Fireworks are a source of stress for people who are sensitive to noise or who want to spend a relaxing evening outdoors. They cause panic among young children and animals," argues the committee of the popular initiative "For a limitation of fireworks" on its website.

The text calls for private individuals to be banned from setting off fireworks "that cause noise" on August 1 (Swiss National Day) and New Year's Day. The aim is to protect humans and animals from excessive noise pollution.

The initiators announced on their website on Friday that they had received 101,615 signatures, of which 83,360 had been authenticated. For an initiative to be put to the vote in Switzerland, 100,000 valid signatures are required.

Corinne Meister, a member of the committee, told RTS that the collection of signatures was continuing.

Exceptional authorisations

Loud fireworks would only be permitted at supra-regional events.

The initiative committee says it is supported by several environmental and animal protection organisations, Pro Natura, Greenpeace Switzerland and the Noise League.

It intends to submit the text to Bern at the end of October to meet the deadline.

The District Court of Winterthur has sentenced a 28-year-old German man to 12 years and three months in prison for murder and other offences. It found him guilty of mistreating his girlfriend's baby until it died.

In its ruling handed down on Friday, the court added to its verdict a fine and deportation from Switzerland for 11 years after the prison sentence has been served.

The offences date back to spring 2021. The judges found that the defendant shook and hit the 20-month-old boy on several occasions when he had custody of him. The infant eventually succumbed to craniocerebral trauma.

The autopsy also revealed that a thoracic vertebra had been fractured prior to the fatal injuries.

The level of repression in Russia is "unprecedented" since the Stalinist era, according to the UN's Special Rapporteur on the country.

The number of complaints from individuals to UN mechanisms has risen sharply, Mariana Katzarova said in Geneva on Friday.

"It's still not as bad" as in the Stalinist era, she told the press. Repression is "sophisticated" and "every week, a new law adds restrictions".

Katzarova also said that "Russia has closed its society". The international community still has the opportunity, by continuing to monitor the situation, to prevent the situation from deteriorating further, in her view.

The Bulgarian started her mandate at the beginning of May. Members of the UN Human Rights Council currently meeting in Geneva are due to discuss the renewal of her mandate in a few weeks' time.

The public prosecutor's office in canton Valais has launched preliminary proceedings in connection with possible sexual assaults in the Catholic Church, the office said on Friday.

It said the prosecutor's office had instructed the cantonal police to investigate "possible criminal offences in Valais that are not time-barred or have not already been dealt with” following a recent report on sexual abuse in the Catholic Church in Switzerland since the mid-20th century. For the accused persons, the presumption of innocence applies during the preliminary proceedings, the Valais prosecutor’s office noted.

The pilot study by the University of Zurich was commissioned by three Catholic bodies, including the Swiss Bishops' Conference. Researchers counted 1,002 cases of sexual abuse since the mid-20th century. In their view, this is only the tip of the iceberg, as most cases were not reported and documents have been destroyed.

The Swiss government decided on Friday that asylum seekers can continue to be accommodated in civil defence facilities in the event of refugees housing shortages.

If a high number of asylum applications is recorded, the Confederation and the cantons may continue to use civil defence facilities. The Swiss government’s ordinance has been extended until December.

Switzerland has currently sufficient capacity for the registration and reception of new asylum seekers, said the Federal Department of Defence in a statement External linkon Friday.

However, if temporary asylum applications exceed the usual numbers, the Confederation can now continue to use civil defence facilities. The ordinance was therefore extended until December 31, 2025.

Switzerland will have to reduce its gas consumption again this winter to reduce the risks of energy supply shortages.

On Friday, the Swiss government set a voluntary target of 15% for the period from October to March.

These savings should help reduce the risk of energy supply disruptions over the winter. The target set by the government is the same as last year's, and it is to be achieved through voluntary gas savings in households, industry, services and public administration.

According to the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, a saving of 15% corresponds to around 3.6 terawatt hours (TWh).

For the time being, the government has not taken any other measures and has not set any electricity savings targets. But it will intervene if the situation worsens.

All honeybee colonies in Switzerland are suffering from chronic diseases. "If beekeepers don't do something about it, all the colonies will be dead in one or two years,” warns bee specialist Peter Neumann.

Swiss bees are infected by the varroa mite, Neumann explained in an interview published on Friday by the CH Media group of newspapers. "There are other viruses that have nothing to do directly with the mite. On the whole, colonies are so weakened that even viruses that would not normally be harmful become a threat".

According to the expert, three measures should be put in place to improve the situation: better information for beekeepers and the general public, the development of protection measures for all bees and honeybees, and finally extensive research into a sustainable strategy against varroa mites. Moreover, the mite must be fought sustainably, Neumann adds. "It's crazy that we've been at the same point for 30 years.”

Insecticides and pesticides

Neumann also calls for a ban on the use of insecticides and pesticides. "There are frightening data on this subject. It almost took my breath away recently [...] I'm surprised we still have insects".

The specialist refutes the idea that there are too many honeybees in cities. "That's a bit like saying that there are too many cows in Switzerland because they eat the grass of deer and rabbits. The density of honeybees in Switzerland is still lower than in Africa, where bees occur naturally in the wild," he says.

First and foremost, bees need to become healthier again, he points out. "This will also reduce the likelihood of infection by other viruses.

Swiss scientists have cured paralysed mice using gene therapy. The results of the research have been published in the American scientific journal Science.

Researchers used gene therapy to stimulate the regrowth of nerves across completely severed spinal cords in mice. The nerves were then directed to connect to the right place underneath the injury site.

The results were published on Thursday evening in the scientific journal Science. Thanks to this gene therapy developed by scientists from the Swiss research institute "Neurorestore", mice with complete spinal cord injuries gained the ability to walk.

These mice showed similar gait patterns as mice that learned to walk again after an incomplete spinal cord injury, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Lausanne (EPFL) announced on Friday.

When the spinal cord of mice and humans is only partially injured, motor functions can recover spontaneously to a large extent. This is not possible after a complete spinal cord injury.

However, the researchers warned that many obstacles still need to be overcome before this gene therapy can be used in humans.

Contradicting Swiss Energy Minister Albert Rösti, the director of the Swiss electricity management group (Swissgrid) has reaffirmed the absolute necessity of an electricity agreement with the European Union (EU).

“There is currently a decoupling of Switzerland from the European electricity market," Swissgrid director, Yves Zumwald, said in an interview published on Friday by the Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ).

"This not only jeopardises the stability of the grid but also makes it difficult to integrate Swiss power stations into Europe," he added. "Without participation in the European electricity grid, stress on the grid will increase, making it more difficult to operate safely.”

On Saturday, Rösti told NZZ that Switzerland did not need an electricity agreement "at any price". "It's a political statement", said Swissgrid director, pointing to a power game between Bern and Brussels.

Switzerland linked to Europe

"This does not change our firm belief that electricity relations between Switzerland and the EU must be normalised," adds Zumwald. "We are linked to Europe by 41 cross-border lines, and we operate the grid with our European partners. It is therefore a very bad idea to exclude Swissgrid from the platforms and bodies that help maintain the stability of the electricity grid".

According to Swissgrid, it is possible to conclude contracts with some foreign grid operators, for example with Italy, "but in the north, with France, Germany and other EU countries, we have been negotiating for three years with no solution in sight".

What's more, he continues, "such technical contracts only guarantee that we can work with the grid operators in these countries [...] This is an absolutely minimal solution".

Zumwald says that it is an illusion to expect Switzerland to be self-sufficient in electricity production. "The more independent we are from the EU, the more expensive it gets".

Switzerland's new state secretary Alexandre Fasel has taken stock of the Switzerland-EU dossier together with his European Union counterpart, Jurai Nociar.

The State Secretary traveled to Brussels on Thursday for his first visit since taking up the post on September 1. The primary purpose of his visit was to introduce himself in person, Fasel said after his meeting with representatives of the European Commission. He will be doing a lot with them in the near future, he added.

The work will “intensify considerably,” he further told a group of journalists from Swiss media. The new state secretary is continuing the exploratory talks that began under his predecessor Livia Leu.

Talks on a framework treaty between the two parties broke down in 2021 when Switzerland walked away from the negotiating table. Both parties have held a series of exploratory talks in an attempt to revive official negotiations.

If there is progress with the EU, but also in the discussions in Switzerland, the chances are good that the Federal Council will draw up a negotiating mandate towards the end of the year, added Fasel.

Some 52% of people in Switzerland wear a helmet when riding bicycles, electric bikes and scooters or electric scooters.

This is according to the Touring Club Switzerland (TCS) which conducted 44 surveys in the spring and at different times of the day, recording 3,123 people riding on two-wheels.

The helmet-wearing rate among electric scooter riders was the lowest at 14%. Of the more than 2,000 people with a bicycle surveyed, 46% wore a helmet.

On electric bikes traveling at speeds below 25 km/h, 68% protected their heads. Although helmets are required for faster electric bikes up to 45 km/h, some 8% ignored the rules.

When comparing the different parts of the country, Italian-speaking canton Ticino appeared to be particularly safety conscious. Some 72% of riders wore a helmet there. In French-speaking Switzerland it was 52% and in German-speaking Switzerland 43%.

The Senate in Switzerland voted in favor of restricting tobacco advertising in print media. This followed approval of a people’s initiative in 2022 that banned tobacco advertisements that could reach minors.

The right-wing party in the Senate would have liked to reduce the scope of several provisions, in particular that concerning newspaper advertising, which goes too far, according to parliamentarian Damian Müller.

Advertising should have been allowed inside publications sold by subscription to adults in his view. But the Centre party clearly tipped the balance in favor of strict application of the initiative, which calls for tobacco advertising not to reach young people.

“Children have access to the newspapers their parents subscribe to, that's a given,” said Marianne Maret from the Centre party. The advertising is aimed at future consumers, she added.

In Switzerland, tobacco causes some 10,000 deaths a year. According to the government's plan, from 2026 onwards, no advertising for tobacco or electronic cigarettes will be allowed in the print media. However, an exception will be made for publications aimed at the foreign market or exclusively at industry professionals.

Switzerland is the only European country that has yet to ban tobacco advertising in newspapers, countered health minister Alain Berset. With the exception sought by the right-wing members of parliament, the country would be left with the status quo, which does not correspond to the new constitutional norm agreed by voters.

Some watering down

As for the rest of the draft revision, the right-wing did manage to scale down some of the provisions, albeit to a lesser extent.

Tobacco advertising will be banned in places accessible to minors. But if appropriate measures are taken to prevent young people from seeing it, it should be permitted. Sponsorship of events should be regulated in a similar way, according to the senators.

In the end, the Senate voted in favor of the revision by 37 votes to 3. The dossier now goes to the House.

A separate plan to restrict tobacco advertising in public places was endorsed by Parliament for 2021. By mid-2024, poster and cinema advertising (already banned in some cantons), advertising on public buildings, sports fields and at sporting events, and sponsorship of international events will be prohibited.

In Switzerland, 32,000 people were hospitalised each year between 2012 and 2019 due to side effects of medications. This is shown for the first time in a joint study by the Universities of Lucerne and Zurich, the University Hospital Zurich and Swissmedic.

During the eight-year study period, adverse drug reactions accounted for 2.3% of all hospital admissions, according to the study. Nearly half of those admitted for side effects (46.9%) were over the age of 65.

The most common side effects noted were related to the digestive system (such as gastrointestinal inflammation), genitourinary system (for example, acute renal failure), or mental/behavioral state (such as opioid dependence).

Some 2.2% of those hospitalised due to side effects, or about 700 per year, died in hospital, the study further shows. Of these deaths, around 12% were reported to Swissmedic.

Despite the legal obligation to report, only about 5% of these hospitalisations were reported to the medicines authority Swissmedic, as the University of Lucerne announced on Thursday. Yet these reports are very important, study leader Patrick Beeler stressed in a statement.

Most previously unknown risks of medications are discovered in this way. According to the researcher, they thus form the most important cornerstone for drug safety. Beeler advocates that the duty to report be adequately addressed in the training of medical professionals.

In an international comparison, this reporting rate is still high, says Beeler. Internationally, the reporting rate is usually between 0.6 and 4.7%.