Federal budget 2025 goes to the agreement conference
Published: Tuesday, Dec 17th 2024, 12:10
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After three rounds of consultations, the Councils have not reached agreement on all points of the 2025 federal budget. The conciliation conference will now deal with seven remaining differences. The focus remains on foreign aid.
Over the past two weeks, the National Council and the Council of States have come closer together on the cuts to international cooperation (IC). After a difference of CHF 220 million at the beginning, there is now a difference of CHF 27 million. In other words, the National Council wants to cut CHF 125 million from foreign aid, while the Council of States wants to cut CHF 98 million following its last decisions on Tuesday.
In addition, six items are still outstanding: There are differences in daycare costs (around CHF 7 million), construction investments (CHF 31 million), regional policy (around CHF 12.5 million), scholarships for foreign students (CHF 1 million), alternative drive systems for buses and ships (around CHF 15.5 million) and measures for wildlife and hunting (CHF 0.5 million).
The conciliation conference now draws up a compromise proposal. If a council rejects the agreement proposal, the lower amount of the budget item in question is deemed to have been accepted.
Cuts to federal staff
On Tuesday, for example, the Councils adjusted a CHF 1.5 million cut to Pro Helvetia introduced by the National Council. And the functional expenditure for defense is to be CHF 35 million lower than estimated by the Federal Council.
Furthermore, the Federal Personnel Office will have CHF 30 million less at its disposal for salary measures. Finally, the Councils have decided on cross-cutting cuts in the material and operating expenses of the Federal Administration (CHF 13 million) and in departmental research (CHF 20 million).
The cuts in various areas are intended to compensate for around half a billion francs that the Councils want to make available to the army. The structural surplus of the federal budget - i.e. the room for maneuver in accordance with the debt brake - amounts to a good CHF 22 million with the latest resolutions of the National Council and a good CHF 59 million with those of the Council of States.
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