1,800 pages long – the Federal Council unveils package of Swiss-EU agreements The outlines of the deal to reset Swiss-European Union relations had been known for months. On 13 June 2025, the federal government approved and published all its contents along with corresponding laws and declarations – marking the beginning of a public consultation process. The package is over 1,800 pages long and consists of two elements: a “section on stabilisation” containing existing agreements that have been amended (e.g. freedom of movement), and a “section on development”, with new agreements on food, electricity and health. The package of agreements continues with the existing bilateral approach guaranteeing Swiss access to the EU single market. Switzerland negotiated a safeguard clause on immigration. Berne also had to make concessions, with the new agreements providing for a “dynamic” adoption of EU law – a particularly contentious area for Switzerland. The consultation process, involving political parties, umbrella organisations and other interested parties, will run until the end of October. (RED) Link to the Swiss-EU package: www.revue.link/cheu Live in France but go to school in Switzerland – end of a Genevan anomaly The Geneva cantonal government announced in June that the 2,500 or so children of cross-border commuters who go to school in Switzerland will, in future, have to attend lessons in France. In other words, the residence principle will also apply to school attendance, meaning that children in the Geneva area will have to attend school in the country in which they live. This marks the end of an anomaly. In other border cantons, parents who live abroad but send their children to school in Switzerland have always had to pay the full school fees. The new regime has not gone down well everywhere. Neighbouring French municipalities are up in arms, saying that Geneva took the decision unilaterally. (SH) For more information, see the online edition of “Swiss Review”: www.revue.link/school “20 Minuten”, Switzerland’s largest newspaper, to end print run “20 Minuten”, the Swiss newspaper with the highest circulation (330,000 in German-speaking Switzerland; 130,000 copies of “20 minutes” in French-speaking Switzerland) will discontinue its print edition at the end of 2025 to focus solely on its online reporting. The move reflects the challenges and rapid pace of change facing Swiss print media. The aggregate print run of Switzerland’s leading daily newspapers has shrunk from 2.51 million to 1.34 million in the last ten years. (MUL) Angela Koller A 42-year-old lawyer from the Centre Party joined the Appenzell Innerrhoden cantonal government in April. So far, so unremarkable. But Angela Koller is different. She is the first woman to be elected as Appenzell Innerrhoden’s cantonal president at the Landsgemeinde, the traditional open-air assembly at which eligible citizens gather to vote. Appenzell Innerrhoden became the last Swiss canton to give women the vote – after the Federal Supreme Court forced it to do so in 1990. Some 35 years later, Koller – who has sat in the cantonal parliament for a number of years – says that she has heard from a lot of women who, in her words, “want better representation”. This motivated her to stand for election. She beat three other candidates to the post, with the customary show of hands sealing a historic result. Koller had previously not only chaired the parliamentary committee responsible for overhauling the cantonal constitution but had also headed the Appenzell employees’ association, AVA. Bodies like the AVA often carry more weight than political parties in Innerrhoden. Koller was exposed to politics from an early age, often listening in to the conversations at her parents’ pub. She has enjoyed reading ever since she was at school, and her book recommendations on Instagram reflect this. Koller will first take on the education portfolio. She and Roland Dähler are the dual heads of the cantonal government. Dähler currently has governing powers, which will pass to Koller at the end of a two-year alternating cycle that has just begun. Innerrhoden’s women may not have been able to vote before 1990, but their embroidery skills used to be one of the canton’s key sources of income. They now have a political milestone to celebrate. SUSANNE WENGER Swiss Review / October 2025 / No.4 8 Top pick News
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