Swiss voters will soon have the chance to have their say in a referendum on the Civilian Service Act, asking whether the number of people moving from the army to civilian service should be reduced, as well as on a far-right initiative to cap the population at 10 million dubbed the "No to 10 million" initiative.
The question at the heart of the populist initiative, to be voted upon on June 14, is how many people should live in Switzerland. The far-right Swiss People's Party (SVP), which proposed it, wants to ensure that the permanent population does not exceed 10 million after 2050.
A similar initiative by the SVP failed 12 years ago.Economic interests at stake
The issue is not only about nationalism, psychology and xenophobia but also about economic interests.
From an economic perspective, this matter is far from simple, said Tobias Heidland from the Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW). He told DW that a "struggle would arise over what kind of immigration to still allow" if voters decided to limit immigration. He predicted that there would be widespread dissatisfaction in the business community, as well as in wider society, as "many highly qualified people would decide against migrating to Switzerland, which would probably be seen as "deterring the wrong ones.'"
