Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Monday
Calls for a new "foreigner tax", shortage of doctors causes alarm and other news from Switzerland on Monday.
Swiss economist calls for imposition of foreigner tax
Reiner Eichenberger, professor of economic policy at the University of Fribourg, developed an economic model that calls for imposing higher taxes on foreign residents.
Wer in Schweiz einwandert, soll eine Kurtaxe zahlen, denn «er hat einen enormen Wohlstandsgewinn»
1/2#Zuwanderer sollen künftig jährliche #Abgabe entrichten müssen, meint der Ökonom Reiner #Eichenberger. Er erklärt, wie ein solches Modell aussehen könnte. https://t.co/zlHafGbv6x
— Hans-Jörg Bertschi (@hjbertschi) October 15, 2023
The reason: the 2.2 million foreign nationals living in the country are better off financially in Switzerland than they would be if they remained in their own countries.
Thus, a “housing tax” of 5,000 to 30,000 francs per year, imposed on each foreigner living in Switzerland, " would make it possible to replenish the public coffers by at least 2.5 billion francs," according to Eichenberger.
This is not the first controversial idea that Eichenberger has come up with.
Earlier this year, he caused a stir when he said that bicycles pollute more than cars, because cyclists eat more to get around.
Lack of doctors will have dramatic consequences, medical association warns
It is no secret that Switzerland is suffering from shortage of workers in many sectors.
While the scarcity of nurses is well known, it turns out there are not enough doctors either.
According to Yvonne Gilli, president of Swiss Medical Association (FMH), Switzerland is training too few doctors, which will create a “healthcare gap” and have dire consequences in the near future, especially since more people are living longer and are developing chronic illnesses.
“We have trained far too few doctors in the past,” Gilli said. “And even if I we train significantly more now, it will still take ten years before these people can actually practice their profession.”
October 22nd election: A welfare recipient is a candidate for the parliament
As The Local recently reported, Swiss MPs are not career politicians, devoting about 60 percent of their time to their parliamentary duties.
When the parliament is not in session, they have ‘regular’ jobs in their home districts; they are lawyers, teachers, doctors, farmers, secretaries, architects, and chefs, among other professions.
All except one: candidate Elias Erne, a member of Young Socialists party, who is running for the National Council, lists his profession as a “welfare recipient.”
The 20-year-old said he wants to represent the 3 percent of Switzerland’s population who receive social assistance.
The general consensus is, not surprisingly, that Erne’s chances of willing a seat are slim to none.
"To me, he is simply a lazy person,” a commentator on the social media said.
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]
Comments
See Also
Swiss economist calls for imposition of foreigner tax
Reiner Eichenberger, professor of economic policy at the University of Fribourg, developed an economic model that calls for imposing higher taxes on foreign residents.
Wer in Schweiz einwandert, soll eine Kurtaxe zahlen, denn «er hat einen enormen Wohlstandsgewinn»
— Hans-Jörg Bertschi (@hjbertschi) October 15, 2023
1/2#Zuwanderer sollen künftig jährliche #Abgabe entrichten müssen, meint der Ökonom Reiner #Eichenberger. Er erklärt, wie ein solches Modell aussehen könnte. https://t.co/zlHafGbv6x
The reason: the 2.2 million foreign nationals living in the country are better off financially in Switzerland than they would be if they remained in their own countries.
Thus, a “housing tax” of 5,000 to 30,000 francs per year, imposed on each foreigner living in Switzerland, " would make it possible to replenish the public coffers by at least 2.5 billion francs," according to Eichenberger.
This is not the first controversial idea that Eichenberger has come up with.
Earlier this year, he caused a stir when he said that bicycles pollute more than cars, because cyclists eat more to get around.
Lack of doctors will have dramatic consequences, medical association warns
It is no secret that Switzerland is suffering from shortage of workers in many sectors.
While the scarcity of nurses is well known, it turns out there are not enough doctors either.
According to Yvonne Gilli, president of Swiss Medical Association (FMH), Switzerland is training too few doctors, which will create a “healthcare gap” and have dire consequences in the near future, especially since more people are living longer and are developing chronic illnesses.
“We have trained far too few doctors in the past,” Gilli said. “And even if I we train significantly more now, it will still take ten years before these people can actually practice their profession.”
October 22nd election: A welfare recipient is a candidate for the parliament
As The Local recently reported, Swiss MPs are not career politicians, devoting about 60 percent of their time to their parliamentary duties.
When the parliament is not in session, they have ‘regular’ jobs in their home districts; they are lawyers, teachers, doctors, farmers, secretaries, architects, and chefs, among other professions.
All except one: candidate Elias Erne, a member of Young Socialists party, who is running for the National Council, lists his profession as a “welfare recipient.”
The 20-year-old said he wants to represent the 3 percent of Switzerland’s population who receive social assistance.
The general consensus is, not surprisingly, that Erne’s chances of willing a seat are slim to none.
"To me, he is simply a lazy person,” a commentator on the social media said.
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]
Join the conversation in our comments section below. Share your own views and experience and if you have a question or suggestion for our journalists then email us at [email protected].
Please keep comments civil, constructive and on topic – and make sure to read our terms of use before getting involved.
Please log in here to leave a comment.