Sunday, December 10, 2023
Published: Sunday, Dec 10th 2023, 05:50
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Expensive real estate for the army, deals with sanctioned grain companies and high personnel costs for financial control: this and more can be found in the Sunday newspapers. The headlines in unverified reports:
"NZZ am Sonntag":
Armasuisse, the federal office responsible for the army's real estate, has missed its strategic targets. The size of the real estate portfolio did not decrease, nor did the costs for maintenance, as the "NZZ am Sonntag" wrote. Due to the international situation, the army cannot do without sites and infrastructure, said the Vice Director of Armasuisse Real Estate, Marcel Adam, to the newspaper. According to the newspaper, the running costs for the real estate portfolio amount to CHF 900 million per year. This figure is likely to rise further in the future.
"SonntagsZeitung":
The Swiss insurance group Swiss Re has concluded 19 contracts with Brazilian grain companies known for illegal deforestation. The insurance company concluded the contracts between 2016 and 2022, as the SonntagsZeitung newspaper wrote based on data from the Reporter Brazil reporting collective. The farms were on the Brazilian government's red list. According to the newspaper, Swiss Re concluded 17 insurance policies with Manto Verde. The Brazilian government had imposed fines on the large farm and designated it as a restricted area. A corresponding register is publicly available. The insurance policies in question are no longer in force, Swiss Re announced.
"SonntagsBlick":
Personnel expenses for employees of the Swiss Federal Audit Office are the highest compared to all other federal civil servants. Between 2017 and 2022, personnel expenses per full-time position increased from CHF 206,000 to around CHF 221,000, as SonntagsBlick wrote. This was followed by the State Secretariat for International Financial Matters at CHF 209,000 per full-time position and the General Secretariat of the Department of Economic Affairs, Education and Research at CHF 208,000. An SFAO spokesperson explained the high costs as a result of the very complex environment to be examined in the context of financial supervision.
"SonntagsZeitung" / "Le Matin Dimanche":
Illegal online platforms offered sports betting on Swiss regional leagues, among other things. Scouts transmitted data such as goals, free kicks and yellow cards directly from the sidelines, as the SonntagsZeitung newspaper wrote. They caught a scout at a regional match in Vaud. He willingly gave the newspaper information. The Swiss Football Association (SFA) was unaware of the detailed list of events on the pitch. Based on the newspaper's research, the SFA is now allowing matches in the second interregional league, the U19 championship and the women's National League B to go ahead. The third and fourth leagues are already being monitored.
"SonntagsZeitung":
Cell phone users must expect higher tariffs due to stricter federal regulations. Network operators must equip their transmission systems with emergency power generators, as the SonntagsZeitung wrote. This should ensure operation for 72 hours in the event of a power failure. Until now, providers have backed up their networks voluntarily. The Federal Office of Communications estimates that this will result in additional costs of CHF 150 million per year. These costs will be borne by the operators Swisscom, Sunrise and Salt. They are expecting higher expenditure than estimated by the federal government. According to the newspaper, the providers are keeping mum on whether they will pass the costs on to customers. The consultation will run until February 2024.
"SonntagsBlick":
Almost one in four members of the farmers' parliament is or has never been a farmer. Almost all members are functionaries, as "SonntagsBlick" wrote. The newspaper analyzed the list of members as of the end of October. The conference brings together 200 mandates on boards of directors, executive boards, foundation boards and management boards in various sectors. In addition to farmers' organizations, companies that benefit indirectly from subsidies to agriculture are often represented. According to the newspaper, almost all of the more than 40 members are members of the SVP, the Center Party or the FDP. Two Greens are members of the farmers' parliamentarians.
"NZZ am Sonntag":
Environment Minister Albert Rösti's action against the wolf is controversial within the administration. The Federal Veterinary Office warned that Switzerland was violating international conservation agreements with the new shooting regime, as the "NZZ am Sonntag" wrote on the basis of confidential documents. Rapid implementation is urgently needed, according to Rösti's department. According to the newspaper, environmental associations will most likely also take legal action against the hunting of wolves in Valais. The canton of Graubünden already stopped wolf hunting on Friday. Environmental associations had lodged an appeal with the Federal Administrative Court.
"NZZ am Sonntag":
Top US diplomat Sonata Coulter has called on Switzerland to step up its efforts to combat illegal money flows. Switzerland's accession to the task force of the G7 states would be very welcome, Coulter told the NZZ am Sonntag. The aim is to ensure that the beneficiaries of accounts cannot hide behind complicated constructs or letterbox companies. The USA welcomed Switzerland's efforts to date to protect the financial center from money laundering and illegal financial flows. "These efforts must continue," said Coulter. According to "NZZ am Sonntag", she thus wrapped up in absorbent cotton what US Ambassador Scott Miller had already called for more strongly in March.
"SonntagsBlick":
The President of the National Council's Security Policy Committee, Mauro Tuena (SVP/ZH), has called for the State Secretariat for Security Policy (Sepos) to be abolished. He told SonntagsBlick that Switzerland's security would also be guaranteed without the Sepos. According to the newspaper, the idea of writing to Defense Minister Viola Amherd to ask her to abolish it is circulating within the Commission. "We want to see the structures of this state secretariat, which are not yet known," said Tuena. Sepos does not yet have a head.
"Le Matin Dimanche":
Environmental activist Nicolas Presti will voluntarily serve a two-month prison sentence from Tuesday. The co-founder of the Renovate Switzerland movement will thus be the first environmental activist to serve a prison sentence in Switzerland for participating in a non-violent action, as "Le Matin Dimanche" wrote. Presti was convicted of damage to property. In 2021, he had filmed two other activists taping a report by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change to the State Chancellery in Lausanne. His fellow activists lodged an appeal and were vindicated. Presti, 30, allowed the court proceedings to come to an end. He refused to pay the fine of 1,800 francs.
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