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Who will be elected to government next Wednesday? And who should take over which department? Shortly before the Federal Council elections, the presidents of the parties met again in the “Arena”.
Next Wednesday, Switzerland will have a new Federal Councilor. On the SP ticket are the two councilors Eva Herzog and Elisabeth Baume-Schneider, on the SVP ticket national councilor Albert Rösti and law professor Hans-Ueli Vogt. Shortly before the decision day on December 7, the party leaders met in the “Arena” and discussed what qualities the potential federal councilors should have in order to convince parliament.
Central President Gerhard Pfister said that one of the decisive factors for parliamentarians in the election will be who they can work well with. He appreciates it when someone politicizes according to their own convictions and stands up for them, even if they run counter to their own party line. “The candidacy ultimately depends on many factors: gender, region, party, a lot has to be right,” says Pfister.
Debate about the representation of the language regions
From the point of view of the FDP, the seat of the outgoing Federal Councilor Simonetta Sommaruga belongs to a representative from German-speaking Switzerland. The party was accordingly indignant when the SP put the Jura State Councilor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider on her two-way ticket. That was not the right choice, the party said.
A fourth person from Romandy in the Federal Council would lead to over-representation of Latins.
According to FDP President Thierry Burkart, the only criterion in the Federal Constitution for the composition of the Bundesrat is the balance between regions and languages. This would not be the case if Baume-Schneider were elected: “A fourth person from Romandy in the Federal Council would lead to over-representation of Latins.” According to Burkart, this should only be possible as a transition. In the medium term, however, this would have to be corrected again in order to protect the concordance.
“I don’t understand the fear that there could be more Latins in the government for a while, especially since Elisabeth Baume-Schneider is also a representative of a canton that has never had a seat in the Federal Council,” said SP co-president Mattea Meyer.
The point is that a German-speaking majority cannot constantly outvote a Latin-speaking minority.
The provision in the federal constitution guarantees the protection of minorities. “The point is that a German-speaking majority cannot constantly outvote a Latin-speaking minority,” Meyer explained. In addition, the new Federal Councilor would have to take into account the interests of the entire population anyway.
Will the departments be castling?
The departments could also be redistributed with the by-elections. The Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication DETEC is in the spotlight. The SVP is said to want to oust the SP, which has so far been able to claim responsibility for this dossier with Federal Councilor Simonetta Sommaruga.
We don’t have enough electricity for our families and businesses, and we need security of supply.
“The Energy Strategy 2050, for which Simonetta Sommaruga is responsible, has failed,” said SVP President Marco Chiesa. It therefore needs a change. “We don’t have enough electricity for our families and companies and need security of supply,” says Chiesa. The SVP has criticized the energy department in the past and is therefore now ready to make a contribution here. According to Chiesa, SVP Federal Councilor Guy Parmelin will probably keep his previous Department of Economics, Education and Research.
“We have the power gap because the bourgeois parties have been stepping on the brakes for ten years,” says GLP President Jürg Grossen. Only since the decision on the energy strategy has progress been made with the expansion of renewable energies.
We have the power shortage because the bourgeois parties put the brakes on for ten years.
The Federal Council has to implement what the electorate decides, such as phasing out nuclear power. “Someone who does not share these decisions or even torpedoes them is not the right person for the environment department,” Grossen continued.
Business in the Federal Council continues
“The Federal Council is like a merry-go-round, one descends, someone else ascends,” said Green President Balthasar Glättli, “in the end the most important thing is that the merry-go-round keeps turning.” The body must function as a whole, which is currently not the case.
The Bundesrat is like a merry-go-round, someone gets off, someone else gets on.
“It cannot be that Parliament has to forge the hot irons, such as in relations with Europe or in climate protection,” explains Glättli. He would therefore wish one thing above all from the Federal Councilors: more courage.