Voters in Switzerland rejected a referendum on an initiative to limit the country's population to a maximum of 10 million, with 54.8 percent voting against the proposal and 45.2 percent in favor.
The final results of the referendum showed a clear rejection of the right-wing Swiss People's Party's initiative to restrict immigration and impose a specific population cap.
According to data released by the Federal Chancellery, 52.3% of voters voted "no" against the constitutional amendment, compared to 47.7% in favor of the "No to Switzerland 10 million" initiative.
The initiative aimed to oblige the government to take immediate measures to brake population growth when 9.5 million people reach the age of 9.5 million, such as limiting naturalization or restricting residency, with the aim of preventing the 10 million threshold from being crossed by 2050. Switzerland currently has a population of about 9.1 million, including more than 1.6 million EU citizens.
The initiative has failed to win the support of major cantons such as Zurich, Geneva and Bern, amid concerns about its impact on the labor market and the national economy, reflecting widespread fears of the proposal's repercussions on the Swiss economy, especially in light of the dependence of vital sectors on foreign labor.
Economic relief and rescue of relations with the European Union
The result was received with great satisfaction by the economic circles, industrial unions, and hospitals, considering that it ensures the continuation of the flow of foreign competencies needed to fill the gaps in the labor market resulting from the aging of society.
The result spared the Swiss stock exchange and major sectors – including medicine and food – a shock that would have affected productivity and competitiveness, and diplomatically, popular rejection was seen as a protection for bilateral agreements with the EU, removing the risk of triggering the "guillotine clause" that would have automatically led to the cancellation of six key economic and trade agreements.
This result gives the federal government in Bern more political space to pursue negotiations to deepen economic and health integration with Brussels without internal pressure, further cementing the trajectory of Swiss-European relations.
Switzerland escapes the "legal guillotine"
The European Union has warned of the dangers of the Swiss initiative as a direct threat to one of the most important pillars of the European Common Market, as Brussels adheres to the principle that the free movement of individuals is an indivisible red line or negotiate in any bilateral agreements.
The initiative touches on the free movement of labor agreement that will automatically activate what is known as the "legal guillotine", as this clause (Guillotine Clause) is one of the most sensitive conditions in the first package of bilateral agreements between Switzerland and the European Union signed in 1999, as it links 6 economic and technical agreements as a single indivisible bloc.
Western experts said that any cancellation or disruption of the Convention on the Freedom of Movement of People would automatically lead to the collapse of the other six agreements associated with it, including the agreements on technical barriers, government procurement, agriculture, air transport, land transport, and scientific research.
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