If Switzerland gets into a crisis, it is up to the Federal Council to deal with it. Chancellor Walter Thurnherr is responsible for ensuring that this is coordinated. It is up to him, for example, to learn the lessons from the corona crisis and to make suggestions as to how Switzerland can better position itself in a similar case in the future. At the same time, he deals with the challenges arising from the Ukraine war. Keyword energy shortage. In an interview, Thurnherr draws the lessons from the crisis years.
SRF News: Has Switzerland changed during these crisis years?
Walter Thurnherr: Sensitivities have changed. One becomes aware that the future will not be the continuous continuation of the present. Times are uncertain. If we had predicted four years ago what was going to happen, it would probably have been dismissed as a nightmare: an excess mortality of 10,000 people a year, a war in Europe and all the other crises that are currently taking place. Today there is a greater awareness that crises can happen. And not only far away from Switzerland, but also here with us.
You have various assignments on how Switzerland can position itself better in times of crisis. Where is the work?
We have identified various vulnerabilities. For example, when it comes to cooperation within the administration. There is a big construction site in digitization. We also found that we need to improve cooperation between science and politics. There are also weaknesses in the cooperation between the federal government and the cantons.
We have established with the cantons that a crisis cannot be dealt with using normal structures.
There were workshops, papers and suggestions for all these construction sites. We will present corresponding variants to the Federal Council next spring and summer.
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Federal Chancellor Walter Thurnherr mediates, coordinates and makes proposals to the Federal Council.
Keystone/Peter Schneider
The cantons have insisted on permanent crisis management teams because they themselves have had good experiences with them. One keyword was the national alarm center.
We will submit proposals with different variants to the Federal Council. One of them will be to build a permanent structure. We have established with the cantons that a crisis cannot be dealt with using normal structures. We need support and maybe more anticipation: a structure that draws attention to the fact that a crisis is approaching and action needs to be taken.
An important point was the inclusion of science. Proposals should be made by the end of next year. Where is the work on this?
Relatively far. We imagine that we have to be better prepared in the crisis. With a network of scientists who are ready to help in the crisis. They should know in advance how they communicate with each other, how they would be compensated and what exactly their task would be.
It probably won’t be as easy in the future as it was in the last 30 or 40 years.
Those are things we can prepare for now. We expect science to know for itself which ten to fifteen representatives would be best in a specific area to advise the Federal Council. In 2020, we only signed the mandate for the ad hoc Covid task force on March 30th. That was definitely too late.
Switzerland was spared from crises for a long time, including the world wars. We are not as crisis-tested as other countries. How can you work towards a rethink here?
Fortunately, we weren’t so used to crises. We must now learn that we will be affected by crises abroad. We saw that in the pandemic, now in the energy shortage. Tomorrow it might be a semiconductor problem. We are part of an international network and will not be spared from future crises. It probably won’t be as easy in the future as it was in the last 30 or 40 years.
We must learn to prepare better for international crises – and not just for avalanches and floods.
The future will be unpredictable and unstable. I am an optimist and believe that we can handle crises well. Ultimately, we managed to do that with the pandemic. In our mountains we have learned to adapt to crises and to prepare for them. We must now learn how to better prepare for international crises – and not just for avalanches and floods.
The interview was conducted by SRF Bundeshaus editor Christine Wanner.