Did you know that Switzerland has around 65'000 kilometres of hiking trails? That's about 1.5 times the circumference of the earth! A huge number of municipalities and volunteer organisations maintain the hiking trails and offer hikes in all the cantons.
Swiss Contemplate Scrapping The Stamp Tax; No Rights For Primates; Pension Reform Put To The Test
News For 15 February 2022
Historically, investments in Swiss companies of over 1 million francs were taxed with a "Stamp Duty" that amounted to 1% of the invested amount. However, in a globally competitive market, where Switzerland's European neighbors have been rapidly reducing and harmonizing corporate tax rates to attract commerce, the Stamp Duty was slated to be ended. However, the tax does have its supporters, and now they've added a referendum question for the 13th of February to ask voters whether the government should be forced to maintain the tax. Historically, the Stamp Duty has generated an average of 250 million Swiss Francs per year over the last 20 years.
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Animal rights activists are disappointed by the apparent lack of concern for the rights of animals. Nearly 75 percent of eligible Swiss voted against the basic rights of more than 300 primate species. Had the referendum passed, it would have guaranteed the right to life and physical and mental integrity of primates in Switzerland. Roche, Novartis and Basel Zoo are pleased with the result. The Zoo is known to do a lot for animal protection and an acceptance would have meant Basel Zoo would not have been able to keep any primates.
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The federal government had planned to raise the official retirement age for women in Switzerland from 64 to 65 in the upcoming fiscal year. However, a voting bloc formed by left leaning parties and trade unions managed to collect more than twice the number of required signatures to put the effort to the test. In the upcoming referendum, voters will decide if the government could proceed with its plan which would save approximately 10 billion Swiss francs per year, and reduce womens' pension benefits by an estimated 1200 francs. Pension benefits are a controversial topic in Swiss politics because of the gap in benefits between men and women, where women typically only get 70% of the benefits equally qualified men receive.