appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Agence France-Presse

The Swiss appeared to have voted down a divisive anti-immigration proposal to cap the country’s population, early projections showed on Sunday.
Shortly after polls closed at noon, initial projections from the GfS.bern institute indicated around 55 per cent opposition to the initiative, which had sparked warnings of “chaos” and devastating impacts for the Swiss economy and European Union relations.
“We are very relieved and happy. This is an important result for our country and for our relations with the EU,” Monika Ruhl, director of the corporate union Economiesuisse, told Swiss public broadcaster RTS.
Opinion polls had suggested that the vote, held under Switzerland’s direct democracy system, would be tight.
Tensions have been running particularly high over the “No to a Switzerland with 10 million!” initiative, put forward by the hard-right Swiss People’s Party (SVP).
That proposal wanted measures to stop the wealthy Alpine nation’s population – currently 9.1 million – going above 10 million before 2050.

In a country where foreigners make up more than a quarter of the population, the proposal, if accepted, would slam the brakes on immigration.
“There has to be a limit,” retiree Gilles Hirt said at a polling station in Bern on Sunday morning, comparing the situation in Switzerland to a ship.
“If it is designed for 150 people and you put 250 on board, it becomes too small. If you put 350 on board, it will sink,” he said.
Swiss ‘Brexit’
The SVP, Switzerland’s largest party, insisted drastic measures were needed, blaming “mass immigration” for a host of problems, from housing shortages and rising rents to overcrowded trains and traffic jams.
SVP parliamentarian Celine Amaudruz told local media she was “disappointed” by the projected results of Sunday’s vote, insisting that Switzerland was facing “colossal challenges” from immigration.
Before the vote, SVP parliamentarian Yvan Pahud said, “Switzerland is a small country that cannot be expanded … [We] do not want to welcome all of Europe”.
“The stakes are very high,” Swiss Justice Minister Beat Jans said before the vote, warning that the vote could provoke the equivalent of a Swiss “Brexit”.
The initiative faces broad opposition from the government, parliament and multiple sectors of the economy.

“In a globalised world, it’s just stupid to try and close borders and put a number on the people that can be in here,” teacher Josefina Luque said in Bern as she cast her vote against the initiative.
Conscientious objection
The Swiss also voted on a bill passed by parliament to make civilian service less attractive and less accessible, at a time when the war in Ukraine and other geopolitical tensions are pushing European countries to bolster army numbers.
It was the political left in the militarily neutral country that called the referendum. They argue the bill is dangerous and could ultimately lead to the alternative to military service being scrapped altogether.
Initial projections indicated that the referendum would pass with 53 per cent in favour, although the GfS.bern institute highlighted that the margin of error was three per cent, meaning the final outcome remained uncertain.
Switzerland has compulsory military service for men. They serve in a unique militia system in which army conscripts do at least four months’ service before being called up repeatedly over a decade for weeks-long refresher sessions.
People who conscientiously oppose military service have been permitted to perform civilian service instead since 1996.
Since access to civilian service was simplified in 2009, the numbers choosing that option have steadily climbed – a trend the government warns has become “problematic”.


Swiss voters reject right-wing plan to cap population at 10 million

Li Ka-shing’s CK Asset sets a 2026 record with US$46.2 million Mid-Levels penthouse sale

European wealth turns to Hong Kong as 30 family offices eye operations in the city

Why gold may rebound 13% this year – and what could hold it back

Switzerland

A pro-population cap sign sits in a field, on the day of the vote on a plan backed by the right-wing Swiss People’s Party (SVP) to limit population growth to 10 million inhabitants, near Hundwil, Switzerland, on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

Swiss People’s Party (SVP) President Marcel Dettling reacts following first results of a vote on a divisive anti-immigration proposal to cap the country’s population, and another referendum on restricting access to conscientious objection to military service, in Aarberg, Switzerland on Sunday. Photo: AFP

Natalie Imboden, a former Green Party member of the Swiss National Council, puts up ‘No’ posters against the Swiss People’s Party’s (SVP) initiative to cap the population of the alpine nation at 10 million, in Bern on Sunday. Photo: EPA

EU threat of trade war against China is a strategic farce

Chinese-made electric cars awaiting export are seen parked at the International Automobile Trade Port in Hangzhou in China’s eastern Zhejiang province. Photo: AFP

European Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security Maros Sefcovic speaks to the media as he arrives to attend a meeting of G7 trade ministers in Paris, France, on May 6.  Photo: EPA

Europe is blaming China’s economic rise for its own failures, think tank says

Trade disputes have escalated ahead of next week’s EU meetings on China policy. Photo: AFP

China’s  Ministry of Commerce says the two sides are in “communications on the relevant dialogue”. Photo: EPA-EFE

EU’s 6 biggest economies agree on capital markets supervision

European Union flags flap in the wind outside EU headquarters in Brussels. The ⁠other 21 EU member states still need to agree to the proposals. Photo: AP

Ukraine and Hungary agree on minority rights, paving way for EU accession talks

Hungary’s Prime Minister Peter Magyar attends a press conference in Paris, France, on Wednesday. Photo: Reuters

US ‘80-85%’ confident of signing peace deal with Iran, senior official says

People run as cars burn during an Israeli strike in Sidon, Lebanon, on Wednesday. Photo: AP

People walk next to a mock-up of an Iranian missile in Tehran on Thursday. Photo: Reuters

A person stands in shallow water as cargo and commercial vessels are anchored in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday. Photo: ISNA via AP

News

World

Europe

Warnings of economic fallout likened to Brexit discouraged support for the referendum which would cap Switzerland’s population


Warnings of economic fallout likened to Brexit discouraged support for the referendum which would cap Switzerland’s population.


Swiss voters reject right-wing plan to cap population at 10 million

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Warnings of economic fallout likened to Brexit discouraged support for the referendum which would cap Switzerland’s population

Warnings of economic fallout likened to Brexit discouraged support for the referendum which would cap Switzerland’s population