National Council insists on increases for education and research
Published: Tuesday, Sep 17th 2024, 09:50
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The National Council wants the federal government to provide more money for education, research and innovation between 2025 and 2028 than the Federal Council has requested and the Council of States has approved to date. The upper chamber insists on almost all increases.
In its Dispatch on the Promotion of Education, Research and Innovation (ERI Dispatch), the Federal Council requested the release of a total of CHF 29.2 billion for the years 2025 to 2028. This means growth of 1.6 percent, not adjusted for inflation. According to the government, more is not possible due to the tight financial situation.
In May, the National Council decided to increase this sum by CHF 152.2 million. The Council of States canceled the increases again; the National Council maintained almost all of them on Tuesday. Its increases now amount to around CHF 143 million.
The National Council wants to make CHF 100 million more available to the ETH Domain. It wants to increase the basic contributions for cantonal universities by CHF 32.4 million and those for universities of applied sciences by CHF 23.5 million. However, it compensated for this with cuts.
It also approved more money for vocational training and continuing education. However, the National Council decided against more money for the "Switzerland Innovation" innovation park at the request of a minority. It agreed with the Council of States on this point.
The councils have already agreed that tuition fees at ETH Zurich will be increased for foreign students who live in Switzerland for their studies or do not have a place of residence in Switzerland. In future, they will have to pay three times the tuition fees for students resident in Switzerland.
The bill goes back to the Council of States.
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