Update 19:00 Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - Two Swiss men who have been held in Libya and living at the Swiss Embassy in Tripoli since July 2008, and who were expected to fly home Tuesday, are still in Libya. The Swiss government raised its veil of silence late Wednesday 26 August with a statement on the situation, noting that “The Libyan Prime Minister informed the President in writing this morning that it was only a matter of time before the administrative procedures required in Libya were finalised.” The two businessmen have been issued exit visas to leave the country.
The men are now awaiting permission from Libyan judicial authorities to take a plane back to Switzerland. A team from the Swiss president’s office is in Tripoli waiting to accompany them.
Update 2 0:30 Update 1 20 August 0:08 Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss government is selling 332.2 million shares in bank UBS, withdrawing “immediately and entirely” its stake in the bank. The announcement was made by Bern after details were published Wednesday 19 August of the Swiss-US out of court settlement in the UBS bank case.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss government says it “deplores” the fact that it was obliged 15 July to inform Swiss banks and the heirs to accounts that belonged to former Zaire (now DR Congo) dictator Mobutu Sese Seko that nearly CHF8 million in Swiss banks must be unfrozen, meaning the money returns to the family. “The Federal Department of Foreign Affairs deplores this result, which marks the end of 12 years of freezing of the assets in which all conceivable solutions were attempted. Since 1997 the Confederation has gone to considerable lengths to bring this matter to a satisfactory conclusion.”
Bern and Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss Federal Council Friday 29 May approved an interest-free 50 year loan for CHF20 million to cover part of the cost of the second phase of renovation at the World Trade Organization building, the Centre William Rappard, in Geneva. The first phase of renovations is underway and the second phase will start in 2010. The work will enlarge the usable space inside existing buildings, notably covering two courtyards. A key element will be a new, underground modular 400-person conference hall.
Soldier: Jefferson, length of service unknown, 2005 © Suzanne Opton ("Stigmata" exhibition)
Bern and Geneva, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) - The Swiss Federal Council Friday 29 May approved an increase in funding for the Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum in Geneva, from CHF3.9 million for 2006-2009 to nearly CHF4.22m for 2010-2013. The council noted that the activities of the museum, focused on humanitarian issues and the development of international rights in this area, are closely tied to one of Switzerland’s main areas of foreign policy.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – A proposal by the Federal Council could mean a deduction of up to CHF1,000 per month for parents who pay for childcare, and a new tax schedule for parents. It would go a long way towards reducing tax discrimination against couples with children, whether they live together or not, the council argues. Federal tax revenues would be reduced by CHF600 million per year.
The proposal now goes to the Parliament.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Swiss Federal Council Wednesday 20 May rejected the proposal of Councilor Evelyn Widmer-Schlumpf to reintroduce quotas for European Union workers. The Schengen area agreement allows for this if certain conditions are fulfilled, notably in times of economic difficulty, but the rest of the seven-member cabinet refused to accept the justice and police minister’s recommendations.
Related: notice from Bern, TSR, Fre
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – The Federal Council (cabinet) in Bern is backing a number of health care cost containment proposals, including a controversial charge of CHF30 to visit a doctor. The measures, recommended by the Federal Department of Home Affairs, are designed to reduce Switzerland’s increasing health costs. The cabinet 6 May announced that it will also ask the home affairs office to draw up the legislation that will be presented to Parliament.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch), The Federal Council yesterday rejected calls to extend the carbon tax to gasoline and diesel fuel, but said it would commit to a 20 percent reduction of greenhouse gases over 1990 levels by the year 2020, in line with the European Union. The decision is part of the council’s recommendations to Parliament to revise Swiss energy laws.
Bern, Switzerland (TSR, Fre) – Christoph Blocher, former federal councilor, could be elected to the cabinet again if his right-wing UDC party’s discussions with parties of the centre go well, UDC leader Toni Brunner says.
Lausanne, Switzerland (l’Hebdo, Fre) - L’Hebdo news magazine this week carries an analysis of the financial crisis and how it is affecting Switzerland: the political world, long “lethargic,” is slowly waking up to a ticking time-bomb.
Bern, Switzerland (GenevaLunch) – Hans-Rudolf Merrz, Switzerland’s finance minister, left the hospital Wednesday, following major heart surgery 10 days earlier, and he informed the Federal Council that he will be take up his duties again when doctors say he is ready.
