Economy

Switzerland has a dense network of bilateral agreements with the EU. By updating five existing agreements with two new internal market agreements and based on cooperation in research, education, and health, the Swiss-EU relationship is to be further developed and stabilized. However, the EU has linked this further development of the network of agreements to a clarification of the institutional framework. The package approach is now to be used for this purpose. Instead of regulating institutional issues as a whole in a horizontal agreement, these issues are now to be resolved individually in each agreement on a sector-specific basis. SwissHoldings welcomes the Federal Council’s efforts, based on a new package of agreements with the EU (“Bilaterals III”), to put existing relations on a solid and lasting footing. At the same time, the association believes it is important to work towards an even better understanding of the longer-term effects of the dynamic adoption of legislation on Switzerland as a business location before concluding an agreement with the EU.