2024 - After the Qatar gate in the EU, the initiative wants more transparency in the case of additional income in the Federal Palace

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The income should not be declared in francs exactly, but at least in an order of magnitude. This is what individual representatives of all parties are demanding.

With the investigations into alleged cash payments from Qatar to a Vice President of the European Parliament, the European Union is currently being shaken by a corruption scandal. As a first measure, the parliament in Strasbourg now wants to tighten the transparency regulations.

The idea is that we know, to a certain extent, how much one earns for a part-time job.

Among other things, EU parliamentarians should have to state the amount of their additional income. A very similar regulation is now being discussed in Switzerland. National councilors should make transparent what they get for a board of directors mandate or an association post.

SRF News: Wouldn’t this transparency requirement directly ban undesirable excesses?
Matthias Strasser: That’s the way it is. A ban would be very difficult to implement in Switzerland because Switzerland has a militia parliament. In this system, it is desirable for National Councilors to have a job alongside politics.

This can also be a board of directors mandate or a function in an association. Those who defend themselves against unwanted excesses in lobbying in Switzerland often end up with questions of transparency.

The situation is not quite comparable to the EU Parliament, where MEPs receive a full-time wage for their parliamentary work.

Does this proposal have a chance in Parliament?
At least he will have a hard time. Exactly the same idea was rejected a few years ago. At that time, the proposal came from the SVP. Parliament would have to impose conditions on itself here, and that is not very attractive per se. Then there were those who said they had supported the ban on new sideline jobs, but that didn’t mean they were in favor of disclosure of wages.

Lisa Mazzone (Greens/GE) hopes that parliamentarians who were newly elected in the last elections will agree. The sensitivity has increased. The fact is that Parliament recently approved transparency requirements – under pressure from a popular initiative. Therefore, from 2023, voting committees and candidates will have to disclose donations of CHF 15,000 or more if they want to spend more than CHF 50,000. A certain movement in politics can be observed.

This is what the Green Councilor of States, Lisa Mazzone, is demanding in a parliamentary initiative that she submitted at the end of the winter session. The week before, the Council of States did not want to know anything about new rules. At issue was a ban on accepting paid mandates after the election if politicians sit on the relevant commissions. Going on to the board of directors of a health insurance company as a health politician was one of the examples mentioned.

But such new rules are too rigid, unjust and unworkable, according to a clear majority with votes from all parties.

Legend:

But now the Green State Councilor Lisa Mazzone is making a new attempt.

Keystone/Anthony Anex (November 29, 2022)

If a ban doesn’t stand a chance, the members of parliament should at least have to disclose how much they earn from sideline activities. Mazzone says: «The money makes a difference. It would be important to know better.” However, the aim is not to provide information in francs and centimes.

Rather, a range would be given, for example whether one earns less than 6,000 francs, less than 50,000 or more than 250,000. So that it becomes clear whether a mandate gives a lot or only a little. “The idea is that we know, to a certain extent, how much you earn for a part-time job,” says Mazzone.