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Chilbis threatens to wipe out the mountain railways at a profit – that’s what the Sunday papers write
The high financial losses of market drivers and showmen due to the corona pandemic, the slow development of the 5G mobile network in Switzerland, and the growing power of Swiss environmental associations – you can find this and more in the Sunday newspapers. The holders of unverified reports:
Chilbis and markets are threatened
Canceling major events like Chilbis, markets and carnivals because of the corona pandemic costs hundreds of millions of francs. As research by “SonntagsZeitung” shows, folk festivals have a high economic value. Due to the pandemic, the affected industry has not made any money for months. The six general associations of market drivers and showmen put the total sales of the annual markets and Chilbis at more than 680 million francs. If there is no help from the federal government now, the industry must turn off the lights. Bern’s Green Regula Rytz is now demanding support for showmen with fixed infrastructure costs and wage replacement.
5G is hardly used
The conversion of the mobile network to the new 5G standard is stalling. As “SonntagsBlick” writes, just over 2 percent of the Swiss population currently uses 5G. Industry representatives blame the radiation limit values of mobile phone antennas. A nationwide 5G network can only be introduced by increasing the limit values. But with this demand, Bern companies are biting into the grain. Next week there will be a meeting between the Director of Uvek, Simonetta Sommaruga, and the CEOs of Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt.
Environmental groups flex their muscles
Swiss environmental associations are gaining influence and showing their muscles. As “NZZ am Sonntag” writes, the environmental lobby has become a broad-based force and surprisingly strong from a financial point of view. Only the four big associations WWF, Pro Natura, Greenpeace and VCS have 680,000 members. In total, they earn more than 100 million francs a year, a large part of the income from membership dues, donations and other benefits. At nearly 46 million francs, WWF’s coffers are more than twice as full as those of the umbrella economic organization Economiesuisse or the farmers’ association.
Berset warns against conspiracy theories
Federal Councilor Alain Berset cautions against people spreading conspiracy theories in connection with the crown pandemic. It seems that a new movement is building here to subvert fact-based and democratic society. In an interview with the “SonntagsZeitung”, Berset said that there were all kinds of different ideologues in the anti-corona movement: far right, radical opponents of vaccines and obscure conspiracy theorists. He has little understanding of the current denied by the virus, which causes much suffering throughout the world.
Farmers oppose fertilizer restrictions
The Swiss Farmers Association is doing everything possible to oppose the adoption of measures against over-fertilization. According to “SonntagsBlick” there was a scandal on this subject. The “Bauernzeitung” published an article on September 4 on a decision of the Economic Commission of the Council of States. The Commission therefore wants to reduce the amount of nutrients, namely manure and fertilizers. The “Bauernzeitung” published in detail who had voted in the commission and how, a clear violation of the secrecy of the commission. The scandal is now causing waves in politics.
The study stimulates the fight for daycare
A new study from BAK Economics is driving the fight for more childcare in Switzerland. Accordingly, with the government investments in 21,000 new places for preschool-age children, the gross domestic product can increase by CHF 3.3 billion, according to the “NZZ am Sonntag”.
SP National Councilor Mathias Reynard, Chairman of the Commission of the National Council for Science, Education and Culture, applauds. Now, at last, there are solid numbers showing the importance of early childhood education and care to the economy. The employer president, Valentin Vogt, sees the cantons, cities and municipalities as responsible.
Mountain railways make a profit
Until now, the Swiss mountain railways have mastered the cliffs of the corona pandemic well. The abrupt end of the ski season did not leave major injuries on the company’s balance sheets, as shown by an analysis by “SonntagsZeitung” in the financial statements for the 2019/2020 financial year.
Things went very well for Bergbahnen Davos / Klosters, which posted a net profit of 2.1 million francs. The Wildhaus, Arosa and Lenzerheide mountain railways also made a profit. The closure came at the best possible time for the railways. Since at the end of the season almost only season ticket holders huddled on the slopes, the loss of revenue was limited. Costs dropped significantly.
Switzerland threatens job cuts and pay cuts
Pay cuts or downsizing: According to the “SonntagsZeitung”, the Swiss airline offers its employees this option. Swiss is currently negotiating with unions and staff representatives on a social plan and individual elements of the collective bargaining agreement. According to Swiss spokesman Markus Lipp, Swiss should save around 20 percent of its costs. The airline is not only starting with personnel costs, but is saving in all areas of the company. According to the VPOD union, they are discussing reducing the workforce by 15 percent. That would be 1,425 of the total 9,500 jobs that Switzerland currently has.
FDPler wants to determine federal judges by lottery
In the discussion on the election of federal judges according to party proportion, the FDP makes a new proposal. The Councilor for States of the FDP, Andrea Caroni, president of the Judicial Commission, has a counterproposal to the justice initiative, which requires that federal judges be determined by lot in the future. Caroni only wants to elect the highest judges for a term in the future. In addition to the quality of the candidates, the proportion of parties would also be taken into account.
Therefore, in the future there would be a single longer term. 12 or 16 years would be conceivable. At the same time, the parliament should be able to remove federal judges from their functions in an emergency, that is, in the event of a serious breach of official functions.
Coop bans plastic cutlery
Coop is banning plastic cutlery from its stores. If you want a fork with salad or lunch, you have to buy wooden cutlery for ten cents in supermarkets and Pronto stores starting on Monday. At the end of September, disposable forks, spoons and knives also disappear from restaurants. To replace it, Coop has developed an eating instrument that combines a fork and a spoon and is suitable for soups, muesli and solid foods. Plus, it’s dishwasher safe and can be reused. It is produced by a third party.
Very reliable PCR tests
According to experts in Switzerland, the PCR tests that can be used to detect coronavirus infections are very reliable. There have been criticisms of these tests recently. There are too many cases of false positives, she told herself. As Professor Gilbert Greub, an expert in the field of microbiology at Lausanne University Hospital (CHUV), said, the risk of false positive CHUV results has been reduced to less than one case per 10,000 tests. Even outside the CHUV, these misdiagnoses are extremely rare in Swiss laboratories. (sda)
