Swiss Socialist Party Introduces Plan for Switzerland to Join EU

The leaders of such a party presented a 32-page document which revealed the advantages and disadvantages of becoming part of the bloc, AtoZSerwisPlus.com reports.

Among the advantages includes participation in decisions in Brussels, as well as the EU’s more advanced climate and policies, as well as more stable cooperation on specific fields such as cooperation on research as well as education.

At the same time, the group also presented the negative side, stressing that it required reforms to Switzerland’s system of direct democracy, as well as the need to double VAT and the pressure that the country’s public service sector would face as it was exposed to EU competition.

The party, through its report, says that Europe is heading towards becoming more socialist, ecological and democratic, which conditions are in the interest of the party.

However, public opinion is at odds with such a perspective. Based on a poll published in 2020, only 7 per cent of the respondents were favourable to Switzerland’s joining the EU.

Still, such figures do not discourage the part that considers the current position as only the beginning of a long journey. In this regard, the party’s co-head, Cédric Wermuth, has stressed that despite the fact that there are no guarantees, the party feels that it is time to reopen a path to Europe.

According to the party, the plan consists of three main phases. The first is focused on sorting out the country’s participation in Horizon Europe as well as Erasmus between now and the end of 2023. The second is to reach an economic agreement by 2028 and, after that, open negotiations to become part of the block.

Based on a report published by Le News, some optimistic members hope that Switzerland will become part of the EU by the end of the decade, while others say that such a process may not be completed soon, adding that it could happen 20 years from now.

In 1992, the country voted against its accession to the European Economic Area, while in 2021, it broke off talks to restructure the county’s agreement with Brussels.

Switzerland has always supported economic cooperation with the EU, but when it comes to membership, the country does not vote yes in order to join the bloc.

In this regard, a professor of European politics at the University of Bern, Fabio Wasserfallen, said that “Switzerland is too rich and too stable to want to join the EU,” adding that the motive is more important than a love of freedom.