National Council cuts credit for foreign aid at the expense of Ukraine
Published: Thursday, Dec 12th 2024, 10:00
Updated At: Thursday, Dec 12th 2024, 09:20
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The National Council wants to make just under CHF 11 billion available to the federal government for foreign aid over the next four years, less than the Federal Council requested and the Council of States approved. This was decided on Thursday in the debate on differences.
This means that slightly less money is available for the International Cooperation Strategy (IC) for the years 2025 to 2028 than before. And only CHF 1.3 billion is available for Ukraine instead of the CHF 1.5 billion requested by the Federal Council. The bill goes back to the Council of States.
Like the Council of States, the National Council initially approved the CHF 11.3 billion requested by the Federal Council for foreign aid. A reduction to CHF 10.3 billion was narrowly rejected, but the spending brake was then not released. The National Council therefore had to deal with the bill again.
Extremely narrow majority
In the second round, the National Council adopted a motion by the SVP and FDP for a cut of CHF 351 million by an extremely narrow margin, with 96 votes to 95 and four abstentions. In addition to the FDP and SVP, a few members of the centrist parliamentary group also said yes to the cut, and Council President Maja Riniker (FDP/AG) cast the deciding vote.
CHF 200 million of the cut will be borne by Ukraine, with the remainder going to development cooperation. The commitment credit for humanitarian aid is not affected. The National Council rejected even more far-reaching proposals for cuts from the FDP and SVP.
Hans-Peter Portmann (FDP/ZH) called for "a small degree of sacrificial symmetry in development cooperation too". Many additional domestic burdens amounting to billions were foreseeable, but the financing was not clear. The majority opposed the motion for cuts in vain.
Fabian Molina (SP/ZH) said that the Federal Council's version of development cooperation was already the "absolute minimum". The commitment credits are a maximum, said Elisabeth Schneider-Schneiter (center/BL). "We can use lower contributions in the budget depending on the situation."
"Not a good development"
Foreign Minister Ignazio Cassis also argued unsuccessfully for the amount requested by the Federal Council. In response to a question from the Council, he said that with 3 percent less money, cuts could be made across all items.
However, he was critical of the cutbacks in aid for Ukraine. "It would not be a good development for Switzerland's credibility," he said before the vote. The Federal Council wants to reserve at least CHF 5 billion for Ukraine by 2036.
©Keystone/SDA
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