Today in Switzerland: A roundup of the latest news on Tuesday
Zurich officials propose a measure to create more housing; tracking misconduct will become easier for police; and more Swiss news in our roundup on Tuesday.
Zurich wants to relieve its housing shortage by adding floors
The demand for rentals in Switzerland’s largest city far outstrips the available supply.
Among various solutions being proposed to tackle this problem, one in particular is being brought up time and again: to renovate certain buildings in the city ‘upwards’ — that is, by putting up additional floors on top of the existing ones.
Various parties have just launched a popular initiative to implement this measure.
Opponents, however, argue that while this measure would result in more living space, the cost of such an undertaking would make the rent in the newly-created accommodations higher, defying the purpose of building ‘affordable’ housing.
READ ALSO: Zurich hit by affordable housing shortage amid record-high immigration
Swiss support for the single health insurance fund is growing
In view of the rising premiums, left-wing MPs continue to call for the current private health insurance to be scrapped in favour of the public system — that is, for the government to run the scheme.
The reason for this radical change is that “with a single player, it will be easier to maintain decent prices,” supporters say.
The movement has been gaining momentum, as indicated by a new survey conducted by the Basel Center for Health Economics (BCHE).
Based on this opinion poll, 68 percent of Switzerland’s population would like the current system to be replaced by a single health insurer, even though in two previous referendums, voters rejected this notion, believing that a private insurance system offers more choices and provides a higher quality of services —including better access to specialists and shorter wait times for medical procedures — than a public option.
Now, however, “it seems that many people are no longer convinced that competition [in this regard] is beneficial,” the survey found.
READ ALSO: Would people in Switzerland benefit from a government healthcare scheme?
Swiss police are developing an application to track bad behaviour
Police services are currently working on the creation of an app intended to report misconduct in public spaces — for instance, illegal dumping of trash, cars left in ‘no-park’ zones, not cleaning up after a dog, and the like.
André Faggioni, who is in charge of this project within the Strategic Studies Department of Geneva’s cantonal police, confirmed that such a mobile application is being developed, but the tool will be reserved, at least initially, only for municipal use.
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 wants to relieve its housing shortage by adding floors
The demand for rentals in Switzerland’s largest city far outstrips the available supply.
Among various solutions being proposed to tackle this problem, one in particular is being brought up time and again: to renovate certain buildings in the city ‘upwards’ — that is, by putting up additional floors on top of the existing ones.
Various parties have just launched a popular initiative to implement this measure.
Opponents, however, argue that while this measure would result in more living space, the cost of such an undertaking would make the rent in the newly-created accommodations higher, defying the purpose of building ‘affordable’ housing.
READ ALSO: Zurich hit by affordable housing shortage amid record-high immigration
Swiss support for the single health insurance fund is growing
In view of the rising premiums, left-wing MPs continue to call for the current private health insurance to be scrapped in favour of the public system — that is, for the government to run the scheme.
The reason for this radical change is that “with a single player, it will be easier to maintain decent prices,” supporters say.
The movement has been gaining momentum, as indicated by a new survey conducted by the Basel Center for Health Economics (BCHE).
Based on this opinion poll, 68 percent of Switzerland’s population would like the current system to be replaced by a single health insurer, even though in two previous referendums, voters rejected this notion, believing that a private insurance system offers more choices and provides a higher quality of services —including better access to specialists and shorter wait times for medical procedures — than a public option.
Now, however, “it seems that many people are no longer convinced that competition [in this regard] is beneficial,” the survey found.
READ ALSO: Would people in Switzerland benefit from a government healthcare scheme?
Swiss police are developing an application to track bad behaviour
Police services are currently working on the creation of an app intended to report misconduct in public spaces — for instance, illegal dumping of trash, cars left in ‘no-park’ zones, not cleaning up after a dog, and the like.
André Faggioni, who is in charge of this project within the Strategic Studies Department of Geneva’s cantonal police, confirmed that such a mobile application is being developed, but the tool will be reserved, at least initially, only for municipal use.
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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