States Councilor Burkart criticizes Berset’s attack on the cantons: “He wants to divert attention from his own failures” – Canton (Aargau) – Aargau

The power struggle between Federal Councilor Berset and the cantons with a high number of cases worsens every day. On Friday, the Health Minister publicly warned: The cantons will have to toughen their Covid measures in the coming days, otherwise the Federal Council will.

On Saturday, Berset duplicated a video session with health directors from eastern Switzerland, Aargau, Baselland and Solothurn and made it clear: He wants to see results by the middle of the week.

Where is the Aargau Council of States, which acts as the representative of its cantons in Bern, in this dispute?

Thierry Burkart has a clear opinion on this: “It is not advisable for the Federal Council to act so masterfully with the cantons”, says the FDP Council of States and turns the tables: “It is obvious: Federal Councilor Berset does not he is in the Federal Council with his proposals he managed to pass and now the pressure is only on the cantons. One has the impression that he wants to divert attention from his own failure by not having prepared enough the second after the first wave. “

If the Federal Council wants to toughen the measures, Burkart said, “it should have the courage to do so.” According to Burkart, the Federal Council would have the option to issue the appropriate orders.

“There is currently no reason to panic”

Professional representative Burkart protects his cantonal government: “There is currently no reason to panic. The canton of Aargau has taken the necessary measures. Other measures must be coordinated with the surrounding cantons or even with all of Switzerland. “

From the point of view of the FDP politician, the federal government also handles false information: “The federal government figures on the hospitals that Berset offers are incorrect. The intensive care units in the Aargau hospitals are busy but still have sufficient capacity. “

Of course, one shouldn’t give in, Burkart explains. And if more measures are necessary in the medium term, they must be taken. But: “You have to be vigilant at all times: closing schools, restaurants, shops, etc. would be very drastic for the population and the economy.”

Like the Council of States Burkart, also argues the responsible Government Councilor Jean-Pierre Gallati. In Aargau there is no “urgent emergency”, he told a news conference Monday morning:

Gallati’s party colleague, Vice President of States Hansjörg Knecht, currently sees no reason to take stricter measures in Aargau. The SVP politician describes “problems with Berset’s approach.”

What bothers him the most is that the Federal Council is putting pressure on the cantons through the media. Instead, the SVP Council of States calls on citizens to take responsibility for hygiene standards and keep their distance. How Burkart also meets Knecht

Suter: “Canton accepts human lives”

Gabriela Suter, National Councilor and President of SP Aargau, sees it very differently from Burkart: “It is irresponsible for the governing council to simply wait. The canton of Aargau should have acted long ago in view of the high number of cases, the tense situation in hospitals and the poor development of the crown in the region.

Suter asks the governing council to reinstate the Corona task force, which it suspended in the summer. In addition to the health director and the cantonal doctor, a committee with specialists is needed who can assess what regional measures are necessary.

Suter criticizes: “With its passive attitude, the canton accepts high mortality rates. That affects me, because behind these numbers there are human lives. “

The SP politician sees the need to act not only in the canton. “This Schwarzpeter game is amazing. I would prefer a national solution. “” It is necessary that there are clear rules on the number of infections and hospital charges where the federal government and the cantons must take measures, such as the traffic light system proposed by the SP. “So there is no change of responsibility so unspeakable every time as now. ”

Humbel: “Comparison with western Switzerland is limping”

The national councilor of the CVP of Aargau, Ruth Humbel, president of the Health Commission of the National Council, takes the side of the canton of Aargau to pull the rope with the federal government. “If the federal government already gives authority to the cantons, then it should allow them to act on their own responsibility.” Like Burkart, Humbel sees no urgent need to act in Aargau: “The deciding factor is the burden on the hospitals and that is stable in Aargau.”

Berset’s argument that the German-speaking Swiss should take as an example the French-speaking cantons, which have reduced crown numbers with rigorous measures, does not hold true for Humbel. «The comparison is weak. Cantons like Geneva or Freiburg had much higher numbers than Aargau. “Also, a yo-yo effect with sometimes high and sometimes low numbers does not solve the problem in the long run, says Humbel.

When asked how many victims can be accepted, CVP policy contradicts his SP colleague, Suter: “You also have to take into account the collateral damage: loneliness, unemployment, lack of perspective, especially with children.”