Swiss vote to cap immigration upsets European Union

Relations between Switzerland and the European Union have been thrown off course after Swiss voters unexpectedly backed a measure proposing to cap immigration from the EU, in a development that will also galvanise the Euro-sceptic movement across the continent.

The European Commission expressed its “regret” and said it would be examining EU-Swiss relations “as a whole” following the announcement that 50.3 per cent of the country and a majority if its cantons (provinces) had backed the initiative of the right wing Swiss People’s Party.

The move was proposed to Swiss citizens in one of the country’s regular binding referendums. The Swiss government will have three years to pass legislation to reintroduce quotas, which were eliminated in a deal struck with the EU back in 1999. While not a member of the EU, Switzerland signed seven bilateral agreements with the region back in 1999, covering issues including the free movement of people, trade barriers, air and road traffic and agriculture.

The EU has been Switzerland’s largest trading partner, while EU citizens, of whom German and Italian nationals form the majority, have contributed to the country’s skilled work force.

The country also joined the Schengen treaty in 2005, following a referendum, while the euro is widely accepted as a currency in the country. However, tensions have remained high over the years, particularly in the German-speaking part of the country, where the entry of highly skilled workers, particularly from Germany, have put pressure on the job and housing markets, and infrastructure.

Just how divisive the issue of EU immigration is in the country was reflected in the vote’s sharp geographical split: while voters in the German speaking region, Basel and Zurich aside, backed the cap, the French-speaking region voted against it. Voter turnout, at nearly 56 per cent, was particularly high in a country that holds several referendums each year. The vote must also be seen in the context of wider hostility towards immigration in Switzerland — in 2009, voters backed a ban on the construction of minarets, while a year later, they approved a measure to automatically deport foreigners convicted of any crime.

The EU and Switzerland will have three years to agree on how a cap could be compatible with existing treaties, but some member states may be unlikely to push for relaxed immigration rules and what could be seized upon by their own Euro-sceptic parties ahead of European Parliament elections in May. “EU governments under pressure from an immigration-sceptic public, such as in the United Kingdom, will be careful not to give the impression of pressing for liberal immigration laws,” said Carsten Nickel, an analyst at Teneo Intelligence.