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There was plenty of fuel in the “arena” with the party leaders: two weeks before the national elections, the SP and SVP were arguing about extremism. The top three election campaign topics were also discussed.
“Would you be happy if the elections were already over?” presenter Sandro Brotz asked his guests in the “Arena” at the beginning of the show. The party leaders of the EVP, Center, GLP and FDP raised their hands.
Not so SVP Vice President Marcel Dettling and SP Co-President Cédric Wermuth. “I’ve been waiting a long time for autumn to come and we can really get started,” said Dettling. Wermuth agreed that he also enjoyed the election campaign.
“Young Tat” commitment causes criticism
But that was it for the unity of the two pole parties. Shortly afterwards, Wermuth launched a frontal attack on the SVP. The background is the events surrounding the Winterthur SVP President Mariawegelin, who hired two members of the “Junge Tat” group, which is considered right-wing extremist, for her election campaign for a National Council seat.
“These are people who fundamentally reject the democratic order and are sometimes policed because they own weapons and are therefore a real threat to our country,” said Wermuth. The SVP clearly rejects extremism, replied Dettling. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s from the left or the right.”
Wermuth criticized: “I expect the SVP to take a clear position and exclude these people from the party.” Dettling continued to emphasize distancing oneself from extremism and added: “But in the end, the party sections have to decide whether members will be excluded.”
Campaign video makes people laugh
After Wermuth and Dettling, opposite Green Party President Balthasar Glättli and EPP President Lilian Studer also had a brief battle of words, which, however, caused laughter in the audience. The reason for this is an election campaign video by the Young Greens from the canton of Geneva. You can see a young, scantily clad woman who says she is hot because the temperatures continue to rise.
Lilian Studer thought it was a “no-go”. “In politics you need a certain decency.” She has always campaigned against sexualized advertising and a limit has been reached here. Glättli replied: “We are deliberately playing with clichés here.” In the final stretch of the election campaign, every means should be used.
Health insurance premiums are the population’s biggest concern
According to the SRG election barometer, rising health insurance premiums are currently the most important political issue for voters. In the “Arena” the party leaders discussed various possible solutions. For GLP President Jürg Grossen it is clear: “The problem is that all actors in our health system get off relatively well, except those who pay premiums.” Now we have to pull ourselves together and find compromises.
And Grossen vented his anger: “The way the health commission works is a catastrophe. And it’s not possible for the insured to have to pay in the end.” FDP President Thierry Burkart wants to start with the system because “there are massive false incentives”. Above all, Burkart calls for more efficiency in the system and the expansion of digitalization in the healthcare system.
It’s not possible for the insured to have to pay in the end.
The group also discussed, among other things, the proposal for income-related premiums and the introduction of a so-called budget health insurance fund. Finally, Center President Gerhard Pfister emphasized that all proposals must now be discussed. “Otherwise, medium-sized businesses will no longer be able to bear the costs of the premiums at some point.”
In addition to health costs, climate and energy policy as well as immigration were topics in the program. The two topics rank second and third on the SRG election barometer.