Institutional conflict over Bilateral III is the first symptom of a dysfunction

A dispute over how Switzerland should approve its next package of agreements with the European Union has become, in Kevin Grangier’s view, the first visible symptom of a deeper institutional illness.

Writing in an opinion article, Grangier says the Bilateral III package should be subject to a double majority of the people and the cantons. He presents that requirement as a matter of federalism and a safeguard against what he calls the arbitrariness of the Federal Council.

The former president of the Vaud branch of the Swiss People’s Party and current secretary-general of Pro Suisse compares the controversy to a disease that develops quietly before its seriousness becomes clear. The debate in the Federal Chambers during the June session, over whether the agreements with the EU should require approval by both voters and the cantons, is described as the first symptom.

Grangier acknowledges Switzerland’s prosperity, innovation and stability, as well as the contribution of its geography and historical inheritance. But he says intellectual honesty also requires recognizing another reality: the country’s prosperity is also the product of a factor that the supplied excerpt does not identify before it ends.