The results of the latest poll on the four federal bills dated February 13 indicate a yes for only one bill.
On February 13, votes on four federal bills will take place in Switzerland.
The voting campaign is entering its final phase. In just three weeks, the Swiss electorate will vote on a total of four national proposals. And according to the latest survey, which was carried out on behalf of the Tamedia newspapers, clear tendencies can be seen in all of them. Only in the case of a submission do the polls currently point to a yes.
Should the media be funded by the state?
The Federal Council and Parliament want to expand subsidies for the media. According to the latest polls, voters see things differently. The no-camp to state media funding continues to grow: According to the survey, 57 percent of Swiss voters reject the bill. That is 6 percent more than in the last survey in early January. Of the 13,342 respondents, only 4 percent were undecided.
What is particularly exciting about the survey figures on media funding is that the increasing rejection can be seen in all political camps. The No camp among SVP sympathizers has gained the most with 7 percentage points. The smallest change of one percentage point took place in GLP. The SP, Greens and GLP voters are currently accepting the bill, while SVP and FDP voters are rejecting it. Compared to the last survey, the center has tipped from approval (46 percent no) to media funding to the no camp (55 percent no).
Even if the distribution of approval or rejection of the bill also corresponds to the positions of the parties on the left-right scale, there is no clear division into two ideological camps in the case of media funding, as can be seen in a bill on state funding for the media could expect. Almost a third of SP sympathizers reject the proposal.
Is stamp duty required?
The Federal Council and Parliament want to abolish the issuance tax on equity capital from corporations and cooperatives because it hinders investment and thus slows down economic development. The voting poll now indicates that the electorate is not so easily convinced of this.
The proposal is put to the vote because the SP has held a referendum against it. In view of the survey results, this could now pay off: 58 percent reject the abolition of stamp duty. 49 percent of them are sure about their no, the remaining 9 percent say “rather no”.
The survey results are even clearer given the many undecided voters: around 10 percent do not yet know how they will vote on February 13th. While Federal Councilor Ueli Maurer is weeping for the proposal, 14 percent in the SVP camp of all places have not yet formed an opinion. The high level of debt due to the pandemic, which has been going on for almost two years, seems to deter many from cutting taxes. Meanwhile, leftists criticize the fact that it is mainly large corporations and not small and medium-sized businesses that benefit from the abolition of stamp duty.
Majority in favor of a tobacco advertising ban
The template “Yes to protect young people from tobacco advertising” is a popular initiative and is intended to prevent tobacco use among young people. The Federal Council and Parliament are relying on an indirect counter-proposal (at the legislative level). However, this is rejected by both the initiators and the opponents of the initiative, albeit for different reasons.
Survey results indicate that the initiators and their concerns are well received by the electorate – the proposal continues to ride on a wave of yes. The sympathizers of all parties except for the FDP and SVP advocate a ban on advertising tobacco. Approval is currently at 62 percent. 53 percent are sure that they will put a “yes” in the ballot box. 2 percent of respondents are still unsure.
A ban on animal testing received less support
Experiments on animals should be banned, without exception. This is what the interest group behind the animal testing ban initiative calls for. The initiators even go one step further: Even products that were developed using animal experiments should no longer be allowed to be imported. The initiative started with little approval and is still losing ground three weeks before the vote.
Compared to the last survey, the no camp was able to gain a full 10 percentage points. Meanwhile, the approval rate is 27 percent. Opponents argue primarily with the great importance of animal experiments for research in medicine. The initiators contradict this argument. They believe that animal testing is in fact useless in the development of new drugs and is therefore pure animal cruelty.