A Comparison of Swiss Cities: Unchecked Growth in Public Administration?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Public administration in Switzerland’s ten largest has grown significantly. In 2022, the latest available date, these cities employed a combined total of 36,254 staff members. That’s equivalent to the population of the city of Chur and represents an 13.3 percent increase compared to 2011. Meanwhile, population growth in these cities…

Future-Proof Jobs? AI in the Swiss Labor Market – 2025

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:7 mins read

Artificial intelligence (AI) has the potential to transform the world of work. Case studies show that AI applications, including the latest large-scale language models, can significantly increase productivity in professions such as customer service and management consulting. Swiss companies also seem to share this view. Investments in IT, communication and…

Emotional Discussion About Industrial Electricity: How Expensive Is Switzerland?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:7 mins read

Are high electricity prices putting pressure on Swiss industry? In recent weeks, some industries, such as steel manufacturers, have raised concerns about a loss of competitiveness. The owner of Stahl Gerlafingen noted that electricity costs in Switzerland are roughly five times higher than in France. Public data on electricity prices…

Flexibility Is Also the Trump Card in the Age of AI

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:11 mins read

Since the launch of ChatGPT at the latest, artificial intelligence has become part of everyday life for the general public. In a survey of computer users, 61% of respondents stated that they use the technology for their work (Deloitte 2023). In the first part of this blog series, we examined…

Switzerland Bets on India

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Flying to the moon, becoming the world’s most populous country, excellent growth forecasts: India is playing an increasingly important role on the world stage. With this in mind, the interest of the EFTA states (Switzerland, Norway, Iceland and Liechtenstein) in a trade agreement with India is understandable. After 16 years…

Swiss Concessions to India

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:10 mins read

Switzerland recently signed a free trade agreement with India within the framework of the EFTA. The world’s most populous country is seen by many Western states as a promising alternative to the increasingly authoritarian China. The agreement is undoubtedly a success, but it did not come without concessions. The next…

Problematic Tax Benefits

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

Economists are generally not fond of subsidies, as they often lead to market distortions and poor allocation of incentives. This also applies to tax benefits, which are among the most problematic forms of subsidies. It is no coincidence that the legislature notes in article 7, letter g of the Subsidies…

Government Spending: Uncovering Hidden Costs

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

“What Is Seen and What Is Not Seen.”: In the 19th century, French economist Frédéric Bastiat developed a didactic tool that continues to help us better understand — and ultimately better shape — government activity. It is easy to lose sight of the fact that every government expenditure has a…

When Taxpayers Cover Marketing Costs

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:9 mins read

Promoting business location sounds good to many. However, what the Confederation means by this may be surprising to some. After all, the primary focus is not on improving framework conditions to increase Switzerland’s competitiveness. Instead, a large proportion of the funding goes towards tourism and regional development. Parliament has allocated…

Beyond Bread and Games

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

The European Football Championship is in full swing. Germany beat Scotland 5:1 in the opening game. But for the host country, it is not just about sports. The Euro 2024 and the upcoming Summer Olympics in Paris belong to the category of mega-events where billions are at stake – and…

Trade On

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

“L’effet naturel du commerce est de porter à la paix […] et toutes les unions sont fondées sur des besoins mutuels.” Most people are probably more critical of the Enlightenment philosopher Montesquieu today than they ever were. Already during the Covid-19 pandemic, supply chains and trade started to be considered…

Switzerland in International Rankings

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:7 mins read

Global minimum tax, unresolved relations with the EU, shortage of qualified personnel, the banking crisis: the risks for Switzerland as a business location seem countless. For years, there have been warnings of a deterioration of framework conditions – even Avenir Suisse occasionally joined in. But what is the real state…

How to Regulate the Banks

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:4 mins read

In its essence, what is banking all about? Many would say it’s the provision of credit. But that is only partly true. Banks don’t just broker money and credit, they also create it – it’s a complex situation. What’s clear, however, is this activity is associated with systemic risk that…

How Successful Is the Bologna Process?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:7 mins read

The Bologna declaration was signed 25 years ago and launched the reform of European higher education. The aim was to enable graduates of all degrees to enter the labor market, including the bachelor’s degree. Avenir Suisse examined this goal in its latest publication “The Bachelor’s Degree, an Underestimated Diploma”. The…

Success for Sugar, Hope for Salt

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:4 mins read

Noncommunicable diseases such as diabetes, cancer, and cardiovascular disease account for two-thirds of all deaths in Switzerland. The risk factors for developing these diseases are manifold, and include consumption of foods high in sugar, salt, and fat. By means of industry agreements, the private sector can play an important role…

Taxes in the Age of Chatbots

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

ChatGPT, a language program based on artificial intelligence, is currently causing quite a stir. The software delivers answers, poems or programming codes in the blink of an eye. It stands for a new type of hardware and software that not only replace humans in simple tasks but can also increasingly…

“The Agricultural Policy is Missing its Targets”

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:8 mins read

Kylian Marcos (Le Temps): The agricultural sector is currently experiencing a revolt in several European countries. In Switzerland, the revolt is focused on the administrative burden. These are closely linked to subsidies, aren’t they? Isn’t this a trap that has fallen on farmers? Patrick Dümmler (Avenir Suisse): Switzerland’s excessive regulations…

Huge Profits for State Electricity Suppliers

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:8 mins read

For many Swiss households, the new year brings higher electricity prices. Compared to 2023, electricity costs for a typical household (H4) will rise over 18 percent on average in 2024. The increase compared to 2021 – when costs began to rise quickly – will be 57 percent. And this, despite…

Counterproductive Quota-Based Policy

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Mira is 27 years old and comes from India. She studied computer science at ETH Zurich and graduated with a master’s degree. She feels integrated in Switzerland and would like to work here after graduating. Because IT specialists are in demand, she has no trouble finding a suitable position. However,…

Politics Keeps Consumers on a Short Leash

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:4 mins read

Former Federal Minister of Finance Ueli Maurer described lowering the value exemption limit as a “mission impossible”. This is the maximum amount up to which foreign goods can be imported without paying VAT in Switzerland. The limit is currently at 300 francs per person per day. However, a reduction is…

Protected by Europe

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

Since the beginning of the Russian invasion of Ukraine more than a year ago, almost 10,000 civilians have been killed, most of them by air strikes on civilian infrastructures. This has been a wake-up call for other European countries, none of which could currently provide sufficient protection for its population…

Let’s Stop Milking The Cow Twice

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:3 mins read

Contrary to what Martin Rufer, Director of the Swiss Farmers’ Union (SBC), wrote in his guest commentary for the NZZ on 4th September 2023, farmers and their families are not victims of a misguided fiscal policy. They are victims of Switzerland’s failed agricultural policy, that has been significantly shaped by…

Hung Over After Birthday Celebrations?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Over half a century ago, in 1972, we established the three-pillar system of retirement provision in our constitution. In 2025, we’ll celebrate the 40th anniversary of the Federal Act on Occupational Retirement, Survivors’ and Disability Pension Plans, the BVG/LPP. When it was introduced, the Swiss pension model received a lot…

What Applies to Switzerland, Also Applies to Avenir Suisse

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:3 mins read

At the beginning of this month, hundreds of August 1 speeches were held in festive marquees with the smell of bratwurst in the air. And as every year, the infamous reports on the nation’s well-being generally unfolded in three clearly defined acts: Act One, the country has been extremely successful…

Why Does Real Bracket Creep Not Get Compensated?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:9 mins read

At the beginning of August, Avenir Suisse’s report on the full financial implications of so-called real bracket creep caused quite a stir ‒ and rightly so. The phenomenon and its effects are largely unknown to the general public, even though the Basel FDP politician Baschi Dürr already described (and named)…

Closing Supply Gaps in the Electricity Market

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Last year, electricity was in short supply, and prices in the electricity market skyrocketed. Rising prices signal a shortage ‒ for example, during hours of high demand and low production from renewables, and during crises such as the gas shortage resulting from the Ukraine war. However, most consumers in Switzerland…

Why Are Banks Regulated in the First Place?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

On June 12, 2023, UBS formally took over Credit Suisse. This step was announced three months ago, at the historic press conference on March 19. Since then, there has rightfully been fierce discussion about the events surrounding the two major banks. Not only was emergency law applied, but state guarantees…

Reducing Barriers to Global Talent

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:4 mins read

How much immigration does Switzerland need and want? There are different angles to this question. On the one hand, there is a labour shortage that will worsen owing to demographic ageing. Without any immigration, around 800,000 vacancies would remain unfilled in 2030. On the other hand, there also needs to…

Why Keep It Simple When You Can Make Things Complicated?

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

As part of the Paris Agreement of 2017 ‒ and backed up by a Federal Council decision in 2019 ‒ Switzerland has committed to becoming climate neutral by 2050. The reduction targets adopted so far are 20% by 2020 and 50% by 2030 versus the greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions of…

Equality Policy at an Impasse

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:5 mins read

A study by the University of Zurich has been stirring things up in Switzerland in the last few days. The alleged and heavily debated core message is that female students in female-dominated fields of study have fewer career ambitions because they stick to traditional gender roles. Now imagine if the…

The Tale of the Evil Market and the Good Basic Supply Network

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:8 mins read

There’s a lot of political stalling and idealization going on. The Energy Commission of the Swiss National Council recently decided to stick with an only partially liberalized energy market. It’s following the lead of the Council of States, which has also rejected the idea of a full opening of the…

The End of the Liberal Order in Switzerland, the Land of Banks

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:6 mins read

Alfred Escher’s bank is history. A toxic cocktail of private mismanagement, governmental knee-jerk reactions and shaken confidence has taken its toll. The history of scandals and mismanagement at Credit Suisse had long weighed heavily. According to reports, clients and major investors had been divesting themselves of the Swiss bank’s products…

The Concentration of Critical Minerals

  • Post category:Avenir Suisse
  • Reading time:3 mins read

Recently, a discovery of so-called rare earths in Kiruna, Sweden, caused a great uproar in the media. Rare earths are a group of 17 elements that are often grouped together because they occur commonly and have similar properties. The EU Commission lists them as critical raw materials alongside metals like…