Switzerland

Federal government, cantons, popular votes.

Switzerland

Zug Canton's Contributions to Swiss Financial Equalization Jump from CHF 180 to 530 Million

Zug canton's contribution to Switzerland's financial equalization system has jumped from CHF 180 to 530 million, according to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. In 2027, redistribution under this system will surge by an additional approximately CHF 500 million. Meanwhile, financial capacity disparities between cantons are widening, contrary to legal requirements. To prepare for the next redistribution battle, Zug is financing a research center using revenues from the OECD minimum tax, a move the canton defends against criticism.

31 July 2026 at 04:28

Switzerland

August 1: NZZ explores Swiss history with six intellectuals

On July 31, 2026, the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) publishes an article featuring six intellectuals exploring Swiss history on the occasion of August 1st. The piece invites these thinkers to reflect on the Switzerland they would prefer to live in. The text begins from a profound dissatisfaction with contemporary Switzerland and questions whether history can serve as inspiration for the country's future. The article describes Switzerland as 'a country that defies all probability' and emphasizes that its future lies in the hands of its citizens. Swiss direct democracy is portrayed as more resilient than even its most ardent defenders believe.

31 July 2026 at 04:19

Switzerland

Paul Biya’s stay in Switzerland reaches record 50-day mark

Cameroonian President Paul Biya has been staying in Switzerland since leaving Cameroon on June 7. As of July 28, 2026, his absence has lasted 50 days, a period described as a record. According to France 24, the 93-year-old president has not been seen in public since his departure. His prolonged absence is fuelling political and media debate in Cameroon. The opposition says the country has been left on “autopilot,” while the presidency has sought to offer reassurance. Available information does not specify the reason for his stay or when he plans to return.

28 July 2026 at 21:11

Switzerland

Rape drugs: Switzerland absent from Project Medusa as ex-UDC deputy faces justice

Switzerland is not participating in Project Medusa, a European operation aimed at dismantling networks linked to drug-facilitated sexual assault—a practice of drugging a victim without their knowledge for sexual aggression. Calls are growing for Switzerland to join this initiative. Meanwhile, a former UDC (Union démocratique du centre) deputy is being prosecuted for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting his ex-wife 140 times, according to Le Parisien. Le Temps reports he allegedly abused three women, including a minor. Life imprisonment is being sought. The case has sparked political reactions in Switzerland.

26 July 2026 at 06:37

Switzerland

French-speaking Swiss have more mythologized view of Swiss history than German-speakers, survey shows

A survey reported on July 25, 2026, by the Neue Zürcher Zeitung (NZZ) reveals that French-speaking Swiss maintain a more mythological image of Swiss history than their German-speaking counterparts. They tend to view Guillaume Tell as a genuine freedom fighter. Federal Councillor Guy Parmelin was photographed wearing a cap inscribed with "1291." Historian Simon Teuscher, a professor of medieval history, challenges the traditional narrative of Switzerland's founding in 1291 in the Alps, calling it a misconception.

25 July 2026 at 20:38

Switzerland

Grimisuat caps growth due to water shortage: other Swiss municipalities could follow suit

The Valais municipality of Grimisuat, located above Sion, has capped its demographic growth due to water scarcity, according to the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. Swiss water distributors are now calling for national guidelines to plan, use, and store water resources. Other Swiss municipalities could take similar measures, opening a debate on local regulation of how many residents Switzerland can accommodate.

25 July 2026 at 20:26

Switzerland

Berne Pride 2026: Thousands March for Queer Rights

Berne Pride 2026 brought together thousands of people on July 25, 2026 in the streets of Switzerland's capital. The colourful and peaceful procession started at noon from Waisenhausplatz, crossed the old town and the Matte and Marzili neighbourhoods along the Aar River, and ended at Federal Square. Speakers emphasised that legal equality remains incomplete. Main demands included banning conversion therapy—pseudo-scientific practices aimed at modifying sexual orientation or gender identity—which remain legal in many cantons, and securing legal recognition for non-binary people.

25 July 2026 at 19:22

Switzerland

France bans social media for under-15s — debate spreads to Switzerland

France has decided to ban access to social media — including TikTok and Instagram — for people under 15 years old. In Switzerland, voices are calling for an identical measure, following the French model. However, Swiss experts consulted by 24 Heures believe such a general ban is "illusory," raising questions about technical feasibility at scale. Le Point argues that the French law "will remain ineffective." The practical procedures for age verification and the implementation timeline remain unclear.

25 July 2026 at 15:29

Switzerland

Dissident Appearances: A 428-Page Book on Two Centuries of Queer Expression in the Francophone World

"Dissident Appearances: Queer Self-Representations from the 19th Century to Today" has just been published by art & fiction (428 pages). Directed by art historians Elizabeth Fischer (HEAD, Geneva) and Magali Le Mens (University of Rennes 2), the collaborative work explores how appearance became a space of resistance across the Francophone world—Belgium, French-speaking Canada, France, Guadeloupe, and Switzerland. The book highlights Ida Erne (1906–1990), a pioneer of Swiss lesbian fiction, and analyzes everyday objects such as t-shirts and backpacks as vectors of queer identity and resistance.

25 July 2026 at 15:04

Switzerland

Geneva: 440 Young Adults with Disabilities Lack Care Solutions, Average 10-Year Wait

In Geneva, 440 young adults with disabilities are without support arrangements after finishing specialized schooling, according to an opinion piece published July 24, 2026 in Le Temps. The average waiting time for appropriate residential care reaches 10 years. At their 20th birthday—sometimes mid-school year—these young people lose their educators and familiar structure overnight. Funding lasting solutions would cost CHF 100 million annually. The opinion is signed by the co-chairs of Cerebral Geneva.

24 July 2026 at 16:34

Switzerland

Paléo Festival 2026: 260,000 attendees in Nyon, wins best European festival title

Paléo Festival 2026, held over six days on the Asse plain in Nyon, welcomes 260,000 festivalgoers, 5,400 volunteers, and 8,000 campers. In January 2026, it won the title of best European festival following an online vote involving 300,000 participants. The organizers deployed measures against heat: misting systems on each tree along the Linden Alley and sunscreen dispensers throughout the site. The weather during festival week proved mild, following a heat dome that had affected Switzerland in June and early July.

24 July 2026 at 15:11

Switzerland

Thomas de Hartmann, Forgotten Ukrainian Composer, Performed at Verbier Festival by Bell and Harding

On July 23, 2026, violinist Joshua Bell and conductor Daniel Harding performed Thomas de Hartmann's Violin Concerto op. 66 at the Verbier Festival's main tent. Hartmann (1885–1956) was a Ukrainian composer whose concerto is considered an unjustly overlooked masterpiece of 20th-century repertoire. Composed in 1943 during his exile in France, this four-movement concerto serves as a tribute to war victims. The work weaves together Jewish musical motifs, folk themes, and lyrical passages, incorporating quotations such as Glinka's Kamarinskaya, while maintaining constant tension through marked ruptures between soloist and orchestra.

24 July 2026 at 15:10

Switzerland

Katarina Barruk at Paléo Festival: Sámi joik resonates in Nyon this Friday

Swedish Sámi singer Katarina Barruk performs this Friday, July 23, 2026, at Paléo Festival in Nyon. Her music blends joik—the traditional Sámi chant with shamanic roots—with electronic and pop sounds. She sings in ume sámi, an indigenous language spoken in northern Scandinavia that few festival attendees will understand. For Barruk, language "carries a worldview and a philosophy." Her ambition is not to transmit tradition, but to offer audiences a space of freedom where everyone can be themselves.

23 July 2026 at 20:40

Switzerland

Nestlé advances strategy to shed slow-growth brands

Nestlé, the Swiss consumer goods group, has made progress in its turnaround strategy aimed at divesting slow-growth brands—referred to as "sleepy brands"—in favor of brands with stronger growth potential, according to the Financial Times of July 23, 2026. This information relies on a single source. The specific brands involved, financial terms, and precise timelines for these operations are not detailed in available data.

23 July 2026 at 19:42

Switzerland

The Cure Returns to Paléo Festival Nyon for Fifth Concert and Two-Hour Greatest Hits

The Cure performed at Paléo Festival Nyon during the night of July 22-23, 2026, for their fifth appearance at the venue. Robert Smith, 67, led a concert of approximately two hours dominated by the band's classics, with only two tracks from Songs of a Lost World, their 14th album released in autumn 2024. The evening opened with a pre-recorded thunderstorm audio and concluded with an eight-song encore medley, including Lullaby, Boys Don't Cry, and Friday I'm in Love.

23 July 2026 at 04:17

Switzerland

At Least 15 Drowning Deaths in Switzerland in One Month; 2026 Toll Already Exceeds 2024 and 2025

By July 21, 2026, at least 15 people have drowned in Switzerland within one month, including two recent deaths in the Aar River, according to data from the Swiss Rescue Society (SSS) shared with Keystone-ATS, Switzerland's primary news agency. This toll already exceeds the 2024 and 2025 figures but remains below 2022 and 2023 levels. Most fatal accidents occur in natural bodies of water—lakes and rivers—where conditions are less predictable than in swimming pools. Young adults aged 17 to 32 and people over 65 represent the highest-risk groups. Men are significantly more likely to be victims than women. Since 1974, Switzerland has seen a continuous decline in annual drowning deaths.

22 July 2026 at 13:34

Switzerland

Geneva Suspends Burkini Ban in Cantonal Swimming Pools

On July 21, 2026, the Constitutional Chamber of Geneva's Court of Justice suspended a law banning long-sleeved clothing—including burkinis—in cantonal swimming pools. The court granted a suspensive effect to an appeal filed by the Coordination for Inclusive Bathing, making the law temporarily unenforceable. The court determined that excluding people from public pools during peak summer season would constitute irreparable harm. The law, enacted in March 2026, is also being challenged by five Geneva municipalities. A final ruling on the merits remains pending.

22 July 2026 at 08:14

Switzerland

Verbier Festival: Simon Rattle Conducts Ligeti, Wagner, Rachmaninov, and Strauss

British conductor Simon Rattle led the Verbier Festival's second major symphonic evening on July 21, 2026, directing the Verbier Festival Orchestra. This temporary ensemble of young musicians from around the world, of which he is artistic director, performed a program bringing together György Ligeti, Richard Wagner, Sergei Rachmaninov, and Richard Strauss. The evening opened with Ligeti's Atmosphères, performed without pause before Wagner's Lohengrin Prelude. The festival's first major evening had been devoted to Messiaen's Turangalîla-Symphonie.

21 July 2026 at 22:09

Switzerland

Geneva: Anti-Burkini Law Suspended in Pools by Cantonal Court

The Geneva Constitutional Chamber has granted suspensive effect to an appeal against the anti-burkini law, making the prohibition of full-coverage swimwear unenforceable in the canton's public pools. The decision was announced on July 21, 2026 by the Coordination for Inclusive Swimming via press release. This association had contested in June 2026 the law adopted in March 2026 by the Grand Council, Geneva's cantonal parliament. The case will be examined on its merits by the court.

21 July 2026 at 17:59

Switzerland

Dessimoz (SIB) Urges Switzerland to Become Global Hub for Trustworthy Scientific Data

Christophe Dessimoz, director of the Swiss Institute of Bioinformatics in Lausanne, published an opinion piece on July 21, 2026 in Le Temps calling for Switzerland to establish itself as the global capital for trustworthy scientific data. He argues that data quality directly determines AI effectiveness: biased or incomplete data produces unreliable results. Switzerland has strong assets according to him—scientific excellence, reliability and international cooperation—to claim this role. Such data serves to understand diseases, monitor the environment and guide policy decisions.

21 July 2026 at 14:33

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