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Today in Switzerland For Members

Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday

Helena Bachmann
Helena Bachmann - [email protected]
Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday
Chaos continues at European airports. Photo by Daniel ROLAND / AFP

Putin sends Switzerland his "heartfelt wishes", chaos continues at some airports, and other Swiss news in our roundup on Tuesday.

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Russia’s president congratulates Switzerland on its National Day

Although Vladimir Putin is not exactly Switzerland’s favourite politician right now, and vice-versa, Russian president had nevertheless sent his Swiss counterpart, Ignazio Cassis, “heartfelt wishes for the national holiday” on Monday.

The message is all the more surprising as the Russian embassy has repeatedly spread negative tweets about Switzerland since the country had adopted EU sanctions against the Kremllin.

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These Swiss cities will be most impacted by gas shortage

The government has already warned the population that due to the imminent shortage of natural gas from Russia, Swiss households should prepare to lower the heat in their homes next winter.

However, the situation is expected to be even worse in cities where a high number of apartments are heated with gas.

For instance, in Solothurn 65 percent of residential buildings depend on gas for heating. That proportion is 60 percent in Biel, 55 percent in Lucerne, 51 percent in Zurich, 47 percent in Bern, and 43 percent in Basel.

And even though some households will suffer, authorities are urging people not to buy electric heaters, as The Local reported on Monday, because “electricity consumption will increase massively when the situation is already tense”.

READ MORE: EXPLAINED: Why you should hold off on buying electric heaters in Switzerland

Know this before you travel: Brussels and Frankfurt are the “worst airports of the summer”

European airports are crumbling under the massive rush of tourists, with lost luggage, missed connections, and passengers stranded for hours.

Brussels and Frankfurt have recorded 72 and 68 percent of delays respectively, followed by Eindhoven (67), London Luton (66), Lisbon and Budapest (both 65), Paris Charles de Gaulle (62), Amsterdam (61), and Nice (60).

Swiss airports, on the other hand, are not doing too badly in comparison.

At Zurich, 46 percent of flights are behind schedule, and 40.5 percent at Geneva.  

READ MORE: Airport chaos in Europe: Airlines cancel 15,000 flights in August
 

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UK workers snub Switzerland

Once a prime destination for British professionals, Switzerland has lost its popularity among UK residents, with more Britons now leaving Switzerland than arriving here.

According to industry experts as well as the British Embassy in Bern, among the reasons for this trend reversal is the complexity of Brexit-related paperwork that has to be filled out to obtain the right to work in Switzerland, along with the fact that the UK now has a shortage of qualified professionals, so more high-level jobs are available there.

 

If you have any questions about life in Switzerland, ideas for articles or news tips for The Local, please get in touch with us at [email protected]

 

 

 

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