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Other cantons benefit massively from Zurich as a location, says a study. Now Zurich is demanding money for its services.
The list of possible examples is long: There is the University of Zurich, for example, where the canton of Zurich spends millions, even though most of the students come from other cantons. But there are also expenses at the University Hospital of Zurich, at the airport police, at the S-Bahn, from which not only Zurich residents benefit.
For a long time it was unclear how much money the canton of Zurich spends on services from which the whole of Switzerland benefits.
But now a new study has come to an explosive conclusion: calculations show that other cantons do not compensate Zurich’s services sufficiently and the canton is left with costs of over 100 million francs per year.
Legend:
The new university building is supported by the canton of Zurich, but the entire Swiss population benefits.
Keystone/Herzog & de Meuron
The majority of these uncovered costs arise in the area of education. The University of Zurich will incur 46.3 million francs and the universities of applied sciences will incur 30.4 million francs.
There are further significant shortfalls in cultural institutions of supra-regional importance (18.1 million francs). According to the study, expenditure in the areas of health and public transport is less significant than previously assumed.
Conservatively calculated 100 million francs
“Everyone benefits from the services provided by the Canton of Zurich, including low-tax cantons such as Schwyz and Zug,” says Zurich Finance Director Ernst Stocker, who commissioned the study from a cross-departmental working group. However, these services for education, the prison system or culture would by no means cover the costs.
Legend:
Services that Zurich provides for other cantons should be better compensated in the future. Zurich finance director Ernst Stocker is pursuing these plans.
Keystone/Ennio Leanza
Stocker emphasizes that the uncovered costs of a good 100 million francs were calculated conservatively. And one should not forget that Zurich will also pay almost half a billion francs into the financial equalization this year.
What is particularly problematic for Stocker is the way in which the central burdens of the individual cantons are regulated. A location advantage is deducted from Zurich. However, the canton is already paying more into the national financial equalization for this. Zurich is essentially being punished twice for its location advantage.
Measures for better load balancing
“The situation has been unsatisfactory for a long time,” said Stocker. Zurich is the milk cow for everyone. That’s why Zurich’s finance director now wants to take measures so that services are better compensated. For example, Stocker now wants to bring other central burden cantons on board, such as Basel-Stadt, St. Gallen or Geneva, and work for a new burden equalization.
Zurich is the milk cow for everyone!
The Zurich Government Council has also adopted guidelines. In the future, this will support the directorates in designing compensation regulations in contracts with other cantons.