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The national civic councils want to force the opening of restaurants on March 22. His plan is likely to fail in the Council of States at the latest.
The Freiburg SP Council of States Christian Levrat, here in a debate in the council, harshly criticizes calls by national councils to open the crown.
Photo: Alessandro della Valle (Keystone)
The decision caused a lot of dust: National councils want to force the Federal Council to lift almost all Corona closures on March 22. To open restaurants, concert halls, gyms and shooting ranges, the Economic Commission wants to override the power of the Federal Council by law.
This approach finds no mercy in the second chamber of parliament. Christian Levrat, chairman of the sister commission of the Council of States, says: “It is a parliamentary uproar that the majority of the Economic Commission of the National Council is planning.” His commission examined a similar request last week.
“For us the case was clear”
Conclusion: The opening paragraph is unconstitutional, says Levrat. In accordance with the constitution and the Epidemic Law, the Federal Council is in charge of protecting the population. If parliament prohibits certain measures, it violates this separation of powers, Levrat argues. “The case was so clear to us that we didn’t even vote on the motion. It was withdrawn. “The Council of States left him with a letter to the Federal Council demanding openings.
The problem with the legal obligation: Even with the emergency law, the Federal Council could no longer close restaurants and gyms because this was only intended for unforeseeable events. The possibility of a third wave is well known. The intervention of national councils could thus show the paradoxical effect that the Federal Council would have to close shops not explicitly mentioned in the law and restrict private gatherings, and in extreme cases even consider closing schools while restaurants remain open.
Dispute in the middle
Such concerns have convinced central economic politician Erich Ettlin: “Our committee was clearly of the opinion that an initial step should not be part of the law. The Council of States is more sensitive to these institutional issues and will presumably stick with its position. “Representatives of Ettlin’s party, Die Mitte, are likely to make a difference. That was already the case in the national economic commission, where some of them joined forces with the SVP and FDP.
The opening paragraph gives a lot to talk about when the center determines its position on Tuesday. National Councilor Leo Müller voted for it in committee, referring to a change in strategy ten days ago: “The majority of the parliamentary group decided that restaurants should open on March 22nd. We have included it in our commission work. “
Does Parliament arouse false hopes?
Left-wing MPs now fear the dispute will keep the Bundestag busy for the full three weeks of the session. “The bourgeois parties will continue the discussion on the opening step in the last week of the session,” says Green National Councilor Franziska Ryser. “I assume that the majority variant of the Commission will be defeated at the unification conference.”
“If the number of cases increases again, the opening requests will be obsolete.”
At worst, this means innkeepers and company hope for weeks that they could start operating on March 22, until it fades a few days earlier. At best, however, the plan works. If the epidemiological situation allows it, the Federal Council will relax on March 22. He has already announced it, but economic politicians will declare that it is his merit. “If the number of infections develops positively, the Federal Council will open more than expected on March 22,” says Levrat. “If the number of cases increases again, the opening requests will be obsolete.”
It is difficult to estimate in which direction the infection curve will trend in the coming weeks: the figures have not fallen for a week, but they have remained stable at a relatively high level and are even increasing slightly. On Monday, the Federal Office of Public Health reported 2,560 new cases, slightly more than a week ago.
The turbo opener requirements catalog.
If the bourgeois economic politicians in the National Council have their way, these contagion figures will soon cease to mean much. It has submitted far more far-reaching requests to the Commission than previously known:
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Everything from March 1: All inaugurations should not be canceled until March 22, but retrospectively from March 1, although parliament can make a final decision on the law on March 19 at the earliest. This is what some SVP representatives are demanding.
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Open shooting ranges: The SVP national councilor, Mauro Tuena, has granted a legislative article a majority in the commission, according to which the shooting ranges can reopen on March 22.
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Federal Council Shackle: If an opening paragraph fails, a second is planned out the back door. The majority of the Commission wants the Federal Council to only be able to close operations for 90 days. Because the FDP National Counselor, Daniela Schneeberger, would retrospectively introduce the closure as of December 1, 2020, the Federal Council would have to end the restaurant closure at the end of March.
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De-empower the Federal Council, tame the working group: SVP representatives demand that the Federal Council can only decide on plant closures with the consent of parliamentary committees. The economic policy of the FDP, Daniela Schneeberger, wanted to present the Minister of Health, Alain Berset, to a committee of the Federal Council for decisions on the pandemic. He wanted to gag the task force. The majority of the commission then followed a similar proposal from SVP National Councilor Marcel Dettling. Only the Federal Council and Parliament can still provide information on the Federal Council’s Covid measures. The task force would be barred from speaking and federal offices would probably no longer be able to provide information on the matter.
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Exceptions for cantons: The Federal Council should facilitate measures for those cantons where the number of cases is decreasing and a strategy has been established. That is what the majority of the Commission is asking for. SVP National Councilor Marcel Dettling even wanted to allow the cantons to decide on their own whether the number of cases was below the Swiss average, leading to permanent exception rules in many cantons, no matter how widespread the virus is.
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Vaccines: The leader of the SVP parliamentary group, Thomas Aeschi, demands that no one who is not vaccinated against Covid be discriminated against.
All the resolutions of the National Council Commission have not yet been set in stone. She will discuss a flood of requests for help due to hardship on Thursday. Many civil claims are aimed at limiting short-term work allowances and hardship benefits, including childcare benefits. On the contrary, the left council wants to expand the aid and loosen the criteria. After the ski race dispute, SP President Cédric Wermuth also wants to tame the cantons: hardship payments should only be received by those who comply with federal regulations against the pandemic.
The Council of States will advise on the Covid Law on Thursday and will arrive at the National Council on Monday.
