Swiss reject population cap
A majority of nearly 55 percent of Swiss voters rejected a proposal to cap the country's population at ten million in a referendum held on Sunday. Launched by the right-wing populist Swiss People's Party (SVP), the 'No to a Switzerland of 10 Million' initiative proposed restricting the number of refugees admitted to the country once a certain population threshold is reached and, under certain circumstances, also ending the freedom of movement agreed with the EU.
Risks identified
The Corriere del Ticino is relieved:
“A majority of voters and cantons viewed the SVP's proposal as an extreme, one-sided and, above all, harmful solution to the problems posed by population growth. Concerns centred on the impact on the economy, foreign policy (the risk of a rift with the EU at a time of geopolitical uncertainty) and even on social security, given that such a solution would have severely restricted the use of foreign labour. In addition, a renewed attack on the free movement of persons was rejected; this had been the main target of the initiative and has been at the heart of existing bilateral agreements [with the EU] for a quarter of a century.”
Hard-working foreigners secure the economy
For Der Tagesspiegel the result is a triumph of pragmatism:
“People know that Switzerland needs workers from beyond its borders. Foreign nationals account for 35 percent of the workforce. Foreigners are particularly active in sectors where the Swiss themselves don't want to work: construction, industry and the hotel and catering industry. But highly qualified newcomers – doctors, managers and scientists – are also working hard and boosting the economy. Without these industrious foreigners, many of them from Germany, the Swiss would struggle to maintain their high standard of living.”
Too many votes in favour
Die Zeit is appalled:
“To think of what happened in Switzerland this Sunday. ... 47.6 percent of the population not only voted for Switzerland to stop the free movement of persons with the European Union, but also to scrap the European Convention on Human Rights and the Geneva Convention on Refugees. They were in favour of Switzerland – at least in part – withdrawing from the European and international legal order. ... 47.6 percent: that's almost 20 percentage points more than the SVP normally secures in national elections. The initiative managed to gain considerable support even within the mainstream, business-friendly milieu.”
Stark warning to the government
La Tribune de Genève sees the result as a sign of growing dissatisfaction with Switzerland's EU policy:
“This is a very clear warning to policymakers that things cannot continue as they are. A way must be found to alleviate the dissatisfaction of a large minority in this country. Under normal circumstances, the SVP initiative would have barely secured 40 percent of the vote. The fact that it effortlessly surpassed that threshold shows that the Federal Council has cause for concern regarding its extensive package of agreements with the EU. ... The warning lights are flashing, given the legal and democratic upheavals these new deals with the EU entail.”
Migration as a recurring issue
Gazeta Wyborcza notes:
“Not only all political parties apart from the SVP and the government, but the business community too, had called for a 'no' vote on the immigration cap. ... They feared problems with access to EU markets and foreign labour shortages. ... Sunday's referendum is not the first time the Swiss have tried to get migration under control. In 2014 they narrowly approved the 'initiative against mass immigration', though this ultimately changed little because the government and parliament turned it into a law that was too vague. In 2020 another draft bill designed to limit the influx of foreigners more decisively was rejected.”