Brussels, 15/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - On Friday 15 January, European Commission President Jean-Claude Juncker told the new President of the Swiss Confederation Johann Schneider-Ammann that the “meetings are difficult” between the two parties for finding a solution to the Swiss referendum of February 2014 on limiting foreign (including European) labour immigration into Switzerland. “I hope they will have a happy ending”, he said on this subject at a press conference the same day.
“Switzerland needs a solution this year”, Schneider-Ammann replied, stating that he had no “illusions” and that it will be difficult “to reach a solution”. The new president succeeds Simonetta Sommaruga, who had several high level meetings with Juncker to try to find a way to apply this limit on immigration without breaching the 2002 agreement with the EU on the free movement of European workers in Switzerland. The Commission warns that this agreement could be threatened by the requirement for quotas that arose from the Swiss referendum in 2014.
In March, the Swiss Federal Council will send the Swiss parliament draft legislation on implementing the new constitutional requirement on immigration. The draft, which was announced in December, focuses on “a mutually acceptable solution with the EU with a view to a safeguard clause that complies with both the federal Constitution and the agreement on the free movement of persons”. Should there be failure, the Federal Council proposes introducing a unilateral safeguard clause into the federal law on foreigners - a solution which Juncker rejected on 21 December. “A safeguard clause that Switzerland can activate on its own is out”, Juncker said (see EUROPE 11458). (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)