The inter-parliamentary meeting provided an opportunity for exchanging views at parliamentary level on the current state of bilateral relations between Switzerland and the EU, and on the Federal Council’s new approach to negotiations on institutional issues. Co-chaired by Council of States member Benedikt Würth (The Centre, SG) and MEP Andreas Schwab (EPP, Germany), parliamentarians discussed the controversial points in the presence of various experts from the Federal Administration and the European Commission.
During the parliamentary talks on 7 October, Livia Leu, State Secretary at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, and Juraj Nociar, head of the cabinet of Vice-President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič, assessed the progress of the exploratory talks to date. In addition, Ambassador Peter Gasser, head of the Free Movement of Persons and Labour Relations division in the Labour Directorate of the State Secretariat for Economic Affairs SECO, and Stefan Olsson, deputy director-general of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion, commented on Switzerland’s accompanying measures and their compatibility with EU law on posted workers. On the question of whether Switzerland will adopt some elements of the EU’s Citizens’ Rights Directive, parliamentarians heard from Tobias Weibel, deputy head of the Free Movement of Persons section at the State Secretariat for Migration, and Monika Mosshammer, deputy head of the Union citizenship rights and free movement unit in the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Justice and Consumers.
At the inter-parliamentary meeting, the two delegation chairs adopted a joint declaration on the current state of bilateral relations. In it, they comment on possible solutions to the institutional issues, the controversial points regarding the free movement of persons and Switzerland’s association to the EU’s education and research programmes, which at present is blocked. The chairs also expressed the expectation that contacts between the Federal Council and the European Commission should be intensified in order to reach the necessary clarification and assurances required for adopting a negotiation mandate. On the Swiss side, this joint statement requires the majority approval of its delegation; at an internal meeting on 22 September, the delegation voted in favour of adopting the declaration by 6 votes to 0, with one abstention.
Following the inter-parliamentary meeting, members of both delegations visited the ETH campus on Hönggerberg in Zurich. The exchange with ETH President Prof. Joël Mesot, Nobel Laureate Prof. Didier Queloz, quantum physicist Prof. Klaus Ensslin and other researchers focused on the impact of Switzerland’s non-association to Horizon Europe.
The Federal Assembly was represented at the inter-parliamentary meeting by Delegation President Benedikt Würth (The Centre, SG), Vice-President Thomas Aeschi (SVP, ZG), National Council members Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter (The Centre, BL), Eric Nussbaumer (SP, BL), Hans-Peter Portmann (FDP.The Liberals, ZH) and Nicolas Walder (The Greens, GE), as well as Council of State members Hannes Germann (SVP, SH), Damian Müller (FDP.The Liberals, LU), Carlo Sommaruga (SP, GE) and Marco Chiesa (SVP, TI). On behalf of the European Parliament, MEPs Andreas Schwab (EPP, Germany), Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg (The Greens/EFA, Germany), Claudia Gamon (Renew Europe, Austria), Christophe Grudler (Renew Europe, France), Zdzisław Krasnodębski (ECR, Poland), Alessandro Panza (ID, Italy), Liudas Mažylis (EPP, Lithuania) and Lukas Mandl (EPP, Austria) took part.
The 41st inter-parliamentary meeting in Rapperswil-Jona.
The Swiss Federal Assembly was represented by members of the EFTA/EU Delegation.
Delegation President Benedikt Würth (The Centre, SG) and MEP Andreas Schwab (EEP, Germany) led the inter-parliamentary meeting.
Livia Leu, State Secretary at the Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, and Juraj Nociar, head of the cabinet of Vice-President of the European Commission Maroš Šefčovič, also participated in the inter-parliamentary meeting.
Working visit to the ETH Hönggerberg campus in Zurich.
f.l.t.r: Zdzisław Krasnodębski (ECR, Poland), Anna Deparnay-Grunenberg (The Greens/EFA, Germany), Didier Queloz (ETH Zurich), Lukas Mandl (EPP, Austria), Benedikt Würth (The Centre, SG), Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter (The Centre, BL), Hannes Germann (SVP, SH), Eric Nussbaumer (SP, BL), Andreas Schwab (EPP, Germany), Christophe Grudler (Renew Europe, France), Joël Mesot (President of ETH Zurich), Liudas Mažylis (EPP, Lithuania)
Lecture by Nobel Laureate Prof. Didier Queloz on the new Centre for Origin and the Prevalence of Life at ETH Zurich.
Guided tour on quantum physics through the ETH laboratories.