The Swiss government has received backing from parliament for the planned negotiations with the United States. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox Following the Foreign Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives, the Senate's sister committee also approved the negotiating mandate on Tuesday. The Senate committee approved the mandate on Tuesday after an in-depth discussion by ten votes to zero with two abstentions, the committee's president, Carlo Sommaruga, told the media in Bern. + US tariff reduction will save Swiss firms: business federation There had been numerous questions about the draft mandate, he said. Economics Minister Guy Parmelin and State Secretary Helene Budliger Artieda had answered most of them satisfactorily. Sommaruga and committee vice-president Petra Gössi did not reveal whether the committee is demanding adjustments to the draft mandate and what these are. Sommaruga said details would weaken Switzerland's negotiating position.

An Italian man has been arrested near the customs post at Brusata, canton Ticino, with more than 100kg of undeclared foodstuffs. The 51-year-old wanted to bring 66 panettones into Switzerland. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox He entered Switzerland in a van via the non-permanent border crossing at Brusata and was arrested shortly afterwards by a mobile patrol, the Federal Office of Customs and Border Protection said on Tuesday. The Italian was carrying 164 litres of oil, 66 panettones weighing 81kg, 5kg of fresh meat, 28kg of mozzarella and around ten loaves of focaccia bread. + Swiss customs intercepted over 200 tonnes of smuggled meat in 2024 The man, who runs a food truck north of the Gotthard, was fined several hundred francs and will have to clear his goods through customs. The cantonal laboratory will also be investigating the conditions under which the goods were transported and stored. Adapted from French by AI/ts How we work We select the most ...

It is highly unlikely that there will be large amounts of snow over the festive period, according to MeteoSwiss. A white Christmas in the Swiss lowlands can be virtually ruled out. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology (MeteoSwiss) said on Tuesday at the request of the Swiss News Agency Keystone-SDA that it was unlikely that there would be significant precipitation on the northern side of the Alps over Christmas. Snow is almost certainly not expected below 1,000 metres over Christmas. + ‘Snow Compass’ guides Swiss resorts through declining snowfall As things stand today, it will be mostly sunny in the mountains. According to MeteoSwiss, fog or high fog can be expected in the lowlands, with a breeze at times. According to the current forecast, maximum temperatures will be 1°C-6°C. Nevertheless, MeteoSwiss said the Christmas weather could not yet be predicted with certainty. Adapted from German by AI/ts How we ...

Nearly 62,000 Swiss people are injured each year while skiing or snowboarding on the slopes. For just over one in five of those injured, the accident is so serious that it results in at least one month's absence from work. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox However, these figures have remained broadly stable over the past few years, according to an analysis carried by the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention and published on Tuesday. The report sets out the overall accident figures for skiing and snowboarding over the past 30 years. Nearly 53,000 skiers and 9,000 snowboarders were injured each year. According to the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention, almost three million Swiss people take to the slopes at least occasionally to ski, compared with 450,000 snowboarders. + Majority of fatal ski accidents happen off-piste The data collected shows that the majority of the Swiss population suffer knee injuries. In addition to poor equipment, over-estimation ...

A higher minimum age for alcohol consumption can significantly improve the academic performance and mental health of young people. The reduction in binge drinking in particular has positive aspects, according to a study by the University of Zurich. +Get the most important news from Switzerland in your inbox The study analysed four Spanish regions that have tightened their alcohol laws over the past 20 years. The reforms generally included a higher minimum age for consumption, stricter sales rules and new advertising guidelines, the University of Zurich (UZH) wrote in a press release on Tuesday. The results of the study are also relevant for Switzerland, it said. Here, 16-year-olds are legally allowed to consume beer and wine and the drinking rate among young people is above the EU average. The findings from Spain suggest that stricter age limits could have educational benefits. For example, raising the minimum age for alcohol consumption from 16 to 18 would be a cost-effective ...