Citizens’ No Alliance calls 13th AHV pension unsocial and expensive
Published: Tuesday, Jan 23rd 2024, 12:40
Updated At: Tuesday, Jan 23rd 2024, 12:41
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The SVP, FDP, Center Party and GLP are standing together against the initiative for a 13th AHV pension. The 13th AHV pension would be unsocial and expensive. It would have to be paid for by employers and employees through a percentage of wages, as well as by consumers and consumers through VAT. It would also jeopardize the AHV.
The popular initiative "For a better life in old age (for a 13th AHV pension)" calls for a 13th AHV pension for all pensioners. In concrete terms, this would increase annual pensions by around 8.3 percent. This would cost five billion francs per year, the "No" committee claimed to the media in Bern on Tuesday.
Pay the bill
"The middle classes would foot the bill through higher VAT and higher wage deductions," said SVP parliamentary group leader and National Councillor Thomas Aeschi (ZG). People who were already suffering from rising health insurance premiums, rents and energy costs would be burdened with high costs.
The text of the initiative does not specify how the 13th AHV pension should be financed. Either those who work or consumers or taxpayers or everyone together would have to pay for it, said FDP National Councillor Olivier Feller from the canton of Vaud. A first option would be to increase salary deductions by 0.7 percentage points, which would have to be borne by employers and employees.
A second option would be to increase VAT by one percentage point. This would increase the standard rate to 9.1 percent. This would mean less purchasing power for everyone, said Feller. And if, as a third option, the federal contribution to the AHV were to be increased, taxpayers would have to pay for it.
The necessary increase in VAT by one percentage point would cost an average household over 500 francs a year, added Brigitte Häberli-Koller (center/TG), member of the Council of States.
Bitter pill feared
"By 2033, AHV expenditure will be over CHF 3 billion higher than income for demographic reasons," she also pointed out. The additional AHV pension would significantly exacerbate the AHV's financial situation. "The little treat will soon become a bitter pill," she warned.
Pensioners abroad would also receive the thirteenth in the event of a yes vote, said Aeschi again. These people could particularly benefit from Swiss pensions thanks to the strong franc and low cost of living. However, the additional costs - via salary deductions and VAT - would have to be borne by the local population and the domestic economy.
Adjustment of the calculation formula
National Councillor Melanie Mettler (GLP/BE) acknowledged that pensioners in Switzerland have to get by with too little money to age with dignity. The committee is therefore campaigning for a targeted increase in low pensions and recalls Mettler's motion adopted in the National Council last December.
This demands an adjustment to the formula for calculating AHV pensions with regard to low incomes. The demand would lead to a doubling of low pensions compared to the initiative, with only a fifth of the financial burden, said Mettler.
The Council of States still has to decide on the motion. The Federal Council is proposing a no. It does not want to pre-empt the next comprehensive AHV reform, which has been ordered by Parliament by the end of 2026, as it writes in justification. The aim of this Federal Council proposal will be to keep the AHV financially stable in the years 2030 to 2040.
"A lot to do at the grassroots level"
According to the first poll published last week by Tamedia and "20 Minuten", 71% of respondents were in favor of the 13th AHV pension. There were also many supportive voices among the base of the conservative parties. Only the majority of the FDP base was against the proposal.
The No campaign is still in the starting blocks, said Häberli-Koller. The committee is confident that it will still be able to convince many people to vote no. "There is still a lot to do among our base," she admitted. Feller added that the financing of the 13th AHV pension would have to be argued for.
©Keystone/SDA
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