Ueli Maurer was contrite in a meeting with Jewish groups. Photo: Federal Chancellery
Swiss Federal President Ueli Maurer has apologized for his controversial message on Holocaust Remembrance Day at the end of January.
READ () »
Christoph Blocher, Swiss People's Party cabinet minister ousted in 2009. Would he still be in government if the people had voted? Photo: Fabrice Coffrini/AFP
Swiss direct democracy means voters get to have their say on almost everything – except who represents them in the seven-person government cabinet. Citizens are being asked to change this in a national vote on June 9th.
READ () »
Photo: Canton of Glarus
By a traditional show of hands at an outdoor assembly, voters in the central Swiss canton of Glarus on Sunday voted against a proposal to teach Swiss-German dialect only to children in kindergarten.
READ () »
Neuchâtel cabinet minister Thierry Grosjean: not used to taking the train? Photo: ThierryGrosjean.ch
A Neuchâtel cantonal government cabinet minister is facing embarrassment after being caught travelling on a local train without a valid ticket.
READ () »
French-language anti-immigration poster used by Swiss People's Party.
The Swiss government on Wednesday decided to extend a safeguard clause limiting work permits for certain EU citizens for 12 months and include workers from all the union's 27 nations beginning next
month.
READ () »
Federal parliament building in Bern. Photo: OFCL
A government spokesman denied on Tuesday that Switzerland was close to a deal covering the country's entire financial sector that would finally settle a dispute with Washington over US citizens' undeclared assets in Swiss banks.
READ () »
Swiss President Ueli Maurer. Photo: Swiss government
Swiss President Ueli Maurer says he sees "no need to change strategy" after fellow financial centre Luxembourg eased its bank secrecy practices.
READ () »
The late Giuliano Bignasca. Photo: Lega dei Ticinesi
The Lega dei Ticinesi (League of Ticino) emerged triumphant from municipal elections in Lugano on Sunday with three of its candidates winning election to the seven-person administrative council, including the party’s dead founder and former president.
READ () »
Ueli Maurer's now defunct Facebook page. (Screenshot)
Disappointed with the results of his brief foray into the most popular social medium on earth, Swiss President Ueli Maurer has given up his Facebook account.
READ () »
Gripen jets. Photo: Anders Zeilon/Saab
Switzerland's purchase of 22 Swedish fighter jets hit yet another snag on Tuesday as the Swiss parliament suspended funding discussions amid reports that EADS was trying to undercut the deal by offering used fighters at half-price.
READ () »
Margaret Thatcher dominates front page of UK newspaper Evening Standard. The former PM failed to escape controversy in her only official visit to Switzerland. Photo: Will Oliver/AFP
Margaret Thatcher, the former British prime minister who died on Monday at the age of 87, is remembered in Switzerland for sparking a rowdy demonstration in Bern that led to multiple arrests.
READ () »
French Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius. Photo: Frédréric de la Mure
France's Foreign Affairs Minister Laurent Fabius on Sunday denied a "rumour" in a newspaper report claiming that he may have a Swiss bank account, as the French government struggles to deal with a scandal over undeclared foreign bank holdings.
READ () »
The late Giuiliano Bignasca. Photo: Lega dei Ticinesi
A Ticino court has authorized the candidacy of Giuliano Bignasca on the ballot for the city of Lugano’s upcoming municipal elections even though the popular right-wing politician died on March 7th.
READ () »
Photo used by Giuliano Bignasca on his Twitter account.
Lugano voters could elect a dead candidate to municipal council if a major political party in the canton of Ticino gets its way.
READ () »
Bern's parliament building. Photo: OFCL
Switzerland's government on Friday rejected calls to axe special rules allowing rich foreigners resident in the country to pay less tax, saying the current system still raised crucial revenue.
READ () »
