Brussels, 19/03/2014 (Agence Europe) - On 9 February, the Swiss voted by 50.3% in a referendum to limit immigration and reintroduce worker quotas within three years. Bern was thus unable to sign and ratify the protocol extending the free movement of persons agreement to Croatia, which was signed with the EU in 2002. This angered the EU and provoked an initial wave of retaliation measures. Head of the Mission of Switzerland to the EU, Roberto Balzaretti, looks back on this turbulent month for bilateral relations and speaks about ways out of the crisis, especially about a way out on Croatia - which Bern is soon due to announce. (Interview conducted by SP with EL)
Agence Europe (AE): Can you already feel the effects of the 9 February vote and the reprisals of the European Commission?
Roberto Balzaretti (RB): The EU has suspended the negotiations that were almost concluded on Swiss participation in the Erasmus + programme (which concerns around 3,000 young university students in both directions per year) and in the Horizon 2020 programme. The EU has also stopped work on a negotiating mandate for the Creative Europe programme. The negotiations on electricity have also felt the impact. With regard to the programmes, it's a shame both for Switzerland and for the EU because we are abruptly removing a collaboration from our companies that has proved its worth. The exchanges between researchers, universities, students and creators are an important component of the cooperation between Switzerland and the EU. Let me recall that 50% of the researchers and professors active in Switzerland are EU nationals. These decisions therefore also harm European nationals. Nevertheless, we can't yet feel the economic effects - for example, research centres which have to close and leave the country. The real economic consequences would be felt if the EU denounced the free movement agreement, which would activate the guillotine clause for all the other bilateral agreements that affect the lifting of obstacles to trade, air and land transport, and agriculture. These agreements are the pillar of our bilateral relationship and if they fall, then yes, there will be big effects. But we are not at that point.
(AE): The current president of the Swiss Confederation, Didier Burkhalter, viewed the EU's reaction as “bad tempered”. What are your relations with the EU like at the current time? How much contact do you have?
(RB): Our relations are very intense. There are 1.25 billion Europeans living in Switzerland and around 270,000 people living on the borders of neighbouring countries who come to work in Switzerland every day. Economic trade in goods and services amounts to €1.5 billion per working day. There would be much to lose on both sides if a brake was put on this trade. The new constitutional arrangement resulting from the 9 February vote gives us a mandate to implement a new immigration system within three years. Between now and February 2017, nothing changes, then, for the Europeans in the area of free movement, and it would not be wise to take immediate measures that can jeopardise the whole structure of our economic and human relations. Overall, we think that we must keep a sense of proportion. There's a problem but we have time ahead of us to resolve it. And in the meantime, let's not break all the china! The 9 February vote provoked a few negative emotions on the EU side. We can understand this heated reaction but we must look to the future. We must not stop the discussions - quite the contrary! For example, it's useful for both parties to start institutional negotiations to renew the global framework of our bilateral relations (Ed: Coreper has still not adopted its mandate for these discussions). These negotiations are of course in the interest of both parties.
(AE): But how do we get out of the deadlock? The Commission is requesting that you sign the protocol on Croatia, for example, to unblock the negotiations - although the 9 February vote prevents you from concluding this protocol?
(RB): Our government has never hidden the fact that it will not be easy to implement the 9 February initiative without affecting the commitments stemming from the agreement on free movement. We have three years to find a viable solution. As regards Croatia, we need to find a solution quickly that enables us not to discriminate against Croatian citizens. Various options are being studied and a pragmatic solution would be in everyone's interest. We will see how the EU reacts to the proposals we make. (Ed: in reality, quotas for Croatia provided for in the protocol only amount to around 50 permits for the first year, which leads some to say that the EU is especially pressing home principles).
(AE): The Swiss authorities have said that the 9 February vote was neither a vote against immigration nor a vote on Schengen. So is there no problem with immigration from the EU?
(RB): This vote especially shows a concern about the speed and intensity of the immigration that has been observed in recent years - with around 80,000 net inflows per year for a country of 8 million inhabitants. It's not a vote against foreign immigration, but for controlled management of this immigration. Switzerland remains, and will continue to remain, a very open country with a large foreign population - one of the largest in Europe moreover, with nearly 24% of the resident population being foreign. The vote also shows concern about the consequences of immigration on working conditions and abuse as regards salary and social dumping. On this, the discussion that we are having is not very different from the one that is taking place in the EU member states.
(AE): On a completely different subject, the Commission said on Tuesday 10 March that it would have an agreement to bring forward before the end of the year on the revision of the EU's tax agreements with third countries like Switzerland (and Liechtenstein, Andorra, San Marino and Monaco). Are you ready to provide the assurances required by Luxembourg and Austria with regard to the fact that you will apply the automatic exchange of information as soon as the OECD world standard is in place? Can you confirm that an agreement with the EU will happen in this timeframe?
(RB): We'll have an agreement when we have an agreement! We are ready to collaborate actively in the development of this international standard, as the Swiss government committed to doing last June. We will only decide on taking on this standard when it has become global. The EU is not alone in deciding.
(AE): Have you had assurances that a satisfactory solution will be found regarding access to the European market for Swiss financial service providers?
(RB): We're continuing the steps to finding solutions to regulate the issues of the past linked to untaxed assets and to facilitate the access of Swiss financial establishments to foreign markets.