Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Friday
Politicians want to downsize Zurich apartments; experts claim immigrants impact housing trends in Swiss cities; and more news in our roundup on Friday.
Zurich MPs give an initiative to shrink apartment sizes a thumbs-up
Zurich is suffering from a housing shortage, prompting elected officials to come up with plans to improve the worsening situation.
Most right and centre-party MPs are therefore supporting a parliamentary initiative which aims to ban minimum room sizes during the construction of new housing.
The canton’s rules currently specify that to be considered a ‘room’, a living space must have the minimum surface of 10 square metres, with a minimum height of 2.3 square metres.
The MPs, however, want this rule to be revised for new apartments, reducing the current space requirements so that more residential buildings can be constructed on available land and, therefore, accommodate more people.
Experts analyse how immigration has changed housing trends
Data shows that foreign nationals settle predominantly in the three largest cities in Switzerland.
In Zurich, the number of people arriving from abroad is almost 7,000 per year higher than that of departures abroad. In Geneva, this figure rises to 5,300 and in Basel to almost 2,500.
While there is no official proof that — as right-wingers claim — these new arrivals cause housing shortages in areas where they settle, “residential property prices have increased more quickly in regions with high immigration,” according to economics professor Volker Grossmann.
“A net immigration of 1 percent leads to a 2.2-percent price hikes for new rentals,” he added.
READ ALSO: Are immigrants really responsible for Switzerland's housing shortage?
Switzerland to vote on motorway expansion
An alliance of environmental mobility groups has collected the required 100,000 signatures to hold a referendum, aiming to keep the government from investing 5.3 billion francs in new motorway infrastructure.
This opposition comes just as MPs greenlighted the widening of Switzerland’s longest motorway, the 410-km-long A1, to at least six lanes in order to relieve chronic congestion on the heavily used Bern – Zurich and Lausanne - Geneva portions of the road.
Once all signatures on the petition are verified by the Federal Chancellery, the vote will be scheduled for the summer (June 9th) or fall (September 22nn) round of national referendums.
READ ALSO: What the Swiss will vote on in 2024
Switzerland’s process for approving new drugs is ‘long and complicated’
The Swiss are traditionally cautious about putting out new medicines on the market, resulting in a slow authorisation process.
These long deadlines can, however, have serious implications for people who are struck by life-threatening diseases.
According to the Federal Audit Office (SFAO), which published a report about this process on Wednesday, “patients, are deluded into the existence of a new treatment, but it is a pity that they have to wait for the lengthy approval process by [drug regulator] Swissmedic, as well as by the Federal Office of Public Health. We are talking about months or even years.”
SFAO’s report showed that current approval processes take about 900 days, but it could be reduced by more than half, to 400 days.
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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Zurich MPs give an initiative to shrink apartment sizes a thumbs-up
Zurich is suffering from a housing shortage, prompting elected officials to come up with plans to improve the worsening situation.
Most right and centre-party MPs are therefore supporting a parliamentary initiative which aims to ban minimum room sizes during the construction of new housing.
The canton’s rules currently specify that to be considered a ‘room’, a living space must have the minimum surface of 10 square metres, with a minimum height of 2.3 square metres.
The MPs, however, want this rule to be revised for new apartments, reducing the current space requirements so that more residential buildings can be constructed on available land and, therefore, accommodate more people.
Experts analyse how immigration has changed housing trends
Data shows that foreign nationals settle predominantly in the three largest cities in Switzerland.
In Zurich, the number of people arriving from abroad is almost 7,000 per year higher than that of departures abroad. In Geneva, this figure rises to 5,300 and in Basel to almost 2,500.
While there is no official proof that — as right-wingers claim — these new arrivals cause housing shortages in areas where they settle, “residential property prices have increased more quickly in regions with high immigration,” according to economics professor Volker Grossmann.
“A net immigration of 1 percent leads to a 2.2-percent price hikes for new rentals,” he added.
READ ALSO: Are immigrants really responsible for Switzerland's housing shortage?
Switzerland to vote on motorway expansion
An alliance of environmental mobility groups has collected the required 100,000 signatures to hold a referendum, aiming to keep the government from investing 5.3 billion francs in new motorway infrastructure.
This opposition comes just as MPs greenlighted the widening of Switzerland’s longest motorway, the 410-km-long A1, to at least six lanes in order to relieve chronic congestion on the heavily used Bern – Zurich and Lausanne - Geneva portions of the road.
Once all signatures on the petition are verified by the Federal Chancellery, the vote will be scheduled for the summer (June 9th) or fall (September 22nn) round of national referendums.
READ ALSO: What the Swiss will vote on in 2024
Switzerland’s process for approving new drugs is ‘long and complicated’
The Swiss are traditionally cautious about putting out new medicines on the market, resulting in a slow authorisation process.
These long deadlines can, however, have serious implications for people who are struck by life-threatening diseases.
According to the Federal Audit Office (SFAO), which published a report about this process on Wednesday, “patients, are deluded into the existence of a new treatment, but it is a pity that they have to wait for the lengthy approval process by [drug regulator] Swissmedic, as well as by the Federal Office of Public Health. We are talking about months or even years.”
SFAO’s report showed that current approval processes take about 900 days, but it could be reduced by more than half, to 400 days.
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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