On 21 September, following heated debate, the Swiss parliament finally reached a decision to approve a bill governing the country’s economy. The proposals advocate “preference” for natives, in certain circumstances, and do not involve a unilateral quota for foreign workers. This means that Switzerland will not be in violation of the bilateral agreement, signed with the European Union in 1999, on the free movement of workers. Adoption of the bill became an obligation following a referendum, which took place on 9 February 2014, in which the public voted against “mass immigration”. The UDC, also known as the Swiss People's Party, which initiated the referendum process, was unable to block the bill, which will be examined by the Council of States, the upper house, in December. No fundamental change is expected and the law is set to come into force in February 2017, at the latest.
A delicate issue for the Swiss economy. After seven hours of intense debate, the National Council, the lower house of Switzerland’s Federal Assembly, voted in favour of bill that had been tabled by the government’s Political Institutions Committee (CIP). The bill was based on a text proposed by the Federal Council, the country’s executive council. In terms of voting numbers, 126 members of parliament voted in favour of the draft law, 67 voted against and 3 abstained. The only members to vote against the bill were from the UDC, a right-wing populist party.
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