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Ten national referendums were held in
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
in 2018. Voting took place on 4 March, 10 June, 23 September and 25 November.


March referendums

Two referendums were held on 4 March. One was on a Federal Decree on the new Financial Regulation 2021, which would extend the right of the federal government to levy VAT and direct federal tax until 2035.Referendum of 4 March 2018
Federal Council
The other was the "Yes to the abolition of radio and television fees"
popular initiative A popular initiative (also citizens' initiative) is a form of direct democracy by which a petition meeting certain hurdles can force a legal procedure on a proposition. In direct initiative, the proposition is put directly to a plebiscite o ...
, which proposed abolishing the
licence fee A television licence or broadcast receiving licence is a payment required in many countries for the reception of television broadcasts or the possession of a television set. In some countries, a licence is also required to own a radio or rece ...
that provides the majority of funding for the
Swiss Broadcasting Corporation The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (; ; ; ; SRG SSR) is the Swiss public broadcasting association, founded in 1931, the holding company of 24 radio and television channels. Headquartered in Bern, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation is a non-pro ...
. The abolition proposal, known by the informal name ''No Billag'', was rejected by the Federal Assembly in 2017. Proponents of the initiative argued it was not fair for everyone to pay the fee regardless of whether they consumed Swiss Broadcasting Corporation output or not, that the total yearly sum of 1.37 billion francs should be spent by consumers, and that the
SRG SSR The Swiss Broadcasting Corporation (; ; ; ; SRG SSR) is the Swiss public broadcasting association, founded in 1931, the holding company of 24 radio and television channels. Headquartered in Bern, the Swiss Broadcasting Corporation is a non-pro ...
would become more politically independent if it did not depend on the mandatory fee.George Mills.
'Scrapping compulsory TV licence fees would be dangerous for Switzerland's direct democracy'
, ''
The Local ''The Local'' is a multi-regional, European digital news publisher targeting expats, labour migrants and second home owners. It has nine local editions: The Local Austria, The Local Denmark, The Local France, The Local Germany, The Local Italy, ...
'', 27 February 2018.
The Local.
Swiss referendum results: everything you need to know
, ''
The Local ''The Local'' is a multi-regional, European digital news publisher targeting expats, labour migrants and second home owners. It has nine local editions: The Local Austria, The Local Denmark, The Local France, The Local Germany, The Local Italy, ...
'', 5 March 2018.
Opponents of the initiative claimed that removing the mandatory fee would threaten national cohesion and that the country would become a "media desert" which would be dangerous to Switzerland's system of
direct democracy Direct democracy or pure democracy is a form of democracy in which the Election#Electorate, electorate directly decides on policy initiatives, without legislator, elected representatives as proxies, as opposed to the representative democracy m ...
. A committee, "Nein zum Sendeschluss", was formed to oppose the initiative. Opponents received support from 6,000 artists who published an online statement "defending cultural diversity in Switzerland" and argued that cultural diversity would be threatened if the initiative passed.The Local.
Artists fight to keep public broadcasting licence fee
, ''
The Local ''The Local'' is a multi-regional, European digital news publisher targeting expats, labour migrants and second home owners. It has nine local editions: The Local Austria, The Local Denmark, The Local France, The Local Germany, The Local Italy, ...
'', 8 January 2018.
Polls suggested 65 percent would vote against the proposal.The Local.
Referendum: Swiss set to stand behind embattled public broadcaster
, ''
The Local ''The Local'' is a multi-regional, European digital news publisher targeting expats, labour migrants and second home owners. It has nine local editions: The Local Austria, The Local Denmark, The Local France, The Local Germany, The Local Italy, ...
'', 21 February 2018
The Federal Decree on the new Financial Regulation 2021 was approved by 84% of votes, while the ''No Billag'' initiative was rejected by 72% of voters.


Results


June referendums

Two referendums were held on 10 June; one on the Sovereign Money Initiative proposal and one on the Federal Gambling Act.Objets de la votation populaire du 10 juin 2018
bjects of the popular vote of 10 June 2018
Federal Chancellery of Switzerland The Federal Chancellery of Switzerland is a department-level agency of the federal administration of Switzerland. It is the staff organisation of the federal government, the Federal Council (Switzerland), Federal Council. Since 2024, it has bee ...
The Sovereign Money Initiative proposal aims to give the
Swiss National Bank The Swiss National Bank (SNB; ; ; ; ) is the central bank of Switzerland, responsible for the nation's monetary policy and the sole issuer of Swiss franc banknotes. The primary goal of its mandate is to ensure price stability, while taking econ ...
a monopoly on
money creation Money creation, or money issuance, is the process by which the money supply of a country, or an economic or monetary region,Such as the Eurozone or ECCAS is increased. In most modern economies, money is created by both central banks and comm ...
.Initiative populaire fédérale « Pour une monnaie à l'abri des crises : émission monétaire uniquement par la Banque nationale ! (Initiative Monnaie pleine) »
Federal Chancellery of Switzerland The Federal Chancellery of Switzerland is a department-level agency of the federal administration of Switzerland. It is the staff organisation of the federal government, the Federal Council (Switzerland), Federal Council. Since 2024, it has bee ...
It was launched by the Monetary Modernisation Association, without the support of any political party.« Monnaie pleine : une opportunité unique en Suisse pour changer la monnaie »
''La Revue durable'', number 60 titled « Des monnaies pour une prospérité sans croissance », winter-spring 2017-2018, pages 26–29.
The collection of signatures began on 3 June 2014, and the
initiative Popular initiative A popular initiative (also citizens' initiative) is a form of direct democracy by which a petition meeting certain hurdles can force a legal procedure on a proposition. In direct initiative, the proposition is put direct ...
was submitted to the Federal Chancellery on 1 December 2015 with over 110,000 valid signatures, despite its technical subject and without the support of
political parties A political party is an organization that coordinates candidates to compete in a particular area's elections. It is common for the members of a party to hold similar ideas about politics, and parties may promote specific ideological or p ...
or other civil society organizations. The Federal Assembly recommended rejecting the initiative.


Results


September referendums

Three referendums were held on 23 September. The first was aimed at requiring the federal government to consider cycle paths in the same way as footpaths and hiking trails, the second would require the government to promote environmentally sound, animal-friendly and fairly produced foodstuffs, and the third to focus agriculture policy on small, family farms and to promote sustainable, diverse and gene-technology-free agriculture. The cycle paths initiative was approved, whilst the food and agriculture ones were rejected.


Results


November referendums

Three referendums were held on 25 November. The first proposal aimed to subsidise farmers who did not dehorn their livestock. The second proposal would have explicitly given the
Swiss Federal Constitution The Federal Constitution of the Swiss Confederation (SR 10; (BV); (Cst.); (Cost.); ) of 18 April 1999 (SR 101) is the third and current federal constitution of Switzerland. It establishes the Swiss Confederation as a federal republic of ...
precedence over
international law International law, also known as public international law and the law of nations, is the set of Rule of law, rules, norms, Customary law, legal customs and standards that State (polity), states and other actors feel an obligation to, and generall ...
whenever the two contradict. The third initiative would allow insurance companies to hire their own detectives to spy on individuals suspected of abusing social welfare privileges.


Results


References

{{Swiss elections
Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...
Referendums A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...
Referendums in Switzerland
Referendums A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...
Referendums A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...
Referendums A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...
Referendums A referendum, plebiscite, or ballot measure is a direct vote by the electorate (rather than their representatives) on a proposal, law, or political issue. A referendum may be either binding (resulting in the adoption of a new policy) or advis ...