Swiss Support Grows for Funding EU’s Border Police, Poll Shows
(Bloomberg) -- The proportion of Swiss people who are prepared to support participation in an expanded European Union border agency, or Frontex, is growing, according to a poll for national broadcaster SRG.
Around 69% of respondents would be willing to increase Frontex financing, up from 63% in a similar poll in March. Meanwhile, the proportion against it decreased from 29% in March to 25% in April. 6% are still undecided. The referendum will be held on May 15.
The poll also notes skepticism has decreased among people that say they don't trust the government. About 60% of these individuals are now in favor of the expansion of Frontex, which significantly reinforces the existing majority.
The Swiss government and parliament are also in favor of continuing their more than 10-year collaboration with the European Border and Coast Guard Agency, which helps Schengen states to control their external borders. A rejection of Frontex would jeopardize Switzerland's cooperation with so-called Schengen and Dublin states.
Opponents of the expansion argue that because Switzerland contributes to Frontex it's in part responsible for alleged human rights violations by the agency at Europe's external borders.
As a result of the expansion, Frontex would receive more funding and staff, and will take on new tasks such as the return of migrants required to leave the Schengen Area. Switzerland's contribution to the border agency would gradually increase to 61 million francs ($66 million) in 2027 from 24 million francs last year.
Also on the ballot next month:
- Changes to rules regarding organ-donation
- An amendment to the Film Act
Earlier: Swiss Voters Set to Back More Funds to Secure EU's Frontiers
©2022 Bloomberg L.P.
-
Signature Play: The Classic Cocktail Is Dead. Or Is It?
Classic cocktails are disappearing from India's cocktail menus. But they're still being ordered, taught to bartenders and borrowed from. So, who's really having the last drink?
-
Love, Sex Aur Dhokha: The Audacious Plot To Spy On Jensen Huang
A Taipei dinner, a Singapore chip buyer and a suspected Chinese asset: inside the alleged spy operation that got close to NVIDIA's Jensen Huang.
-
Ten Things I Learnt This Samvat
Patience can be a trap. Cheap stocks can stay cheap. Leverage can wipe you out. What did Samvat 2082 teach us? Niraj Shah writes on 10 lessons from the year gone by.
-
Talking Points This Week: Tech Nerves, FII Buying, And A Faraway Banking Shock
The global markets are not shining this Diwali. The exception in the large markets is, India.
-
Midterm Rally Lasted A Day. The Hard Reality Of A Divided US May Last Two Years | Opinion
Between a contested AI boom, a debt ceiling that arrives in 2027 and a president with every incentive to act alone, the next two years may prove more volatile than the first day's rally suggests.
-
Blue Wave Will Derail the AI Trade but Won't Dismantle the AI Era | Unhedged Position
The Democrats' sweep of the US Congress will see politics collide with economic forces both over the long and short term.
-
It's Time To Take The GST Council's Bet On Trust Global
Payment records can prove India's services exports, and clear, proportionate rules can bring foreign digital sellers into the tax net.
-
Opinion | India at 38: From Innovation Overperformer to Innovation Powerhouse
India now has 453 VC-backed deep science startups, 18 of them late-stage, after 117 percent growth since 2020. Laurus Labs, at USD 9.3 billion, is the most valuable deep science company in any middle-income economy outside China.
-
Navigating Energy Crossroads: S Jaishankar's Call For Diversified Supply Chains At G20 Ministerial Meeting
As geopolitical fault lines continue to test maritime trade routes and commodity flows, Jaishankar's message remains pertinent: true economic resilience requires open markets, protected transit lines, and a genuine commitment to multilateral cooperation rather than coercion.
