Swiss reject population cap in referendum, avoiding EU clash and cheering business

FOREIGNERS 28 PERCENT OF SWISS POPULATION

The Swiss population already stands at 9.1 million and has grown far more quickly than in the surrounding EU. Foreigners make up nearly 28 percent of the total, which official projections forecast will reach 10 million by the early 2040s.

Polls had forecast a close outcome. In the end, the ‘no’ camp’s victory was clearer than many analysts had expected.

Zurich schoolteacher Jan Hesselmann, 27, was happy with the result, but concerned by the support the proposal got. “It’s the wrong way to go about it, it fuels xenophobia,” he said.

The cap proposal sits alongside growing support for policies aimed at curbing immigration across Europe. Campaign posters proclaimed only 10 percent of incomers were needed skilled workers and that asylum seekers were more likely to be rapists.

Turnout was about 59 percent, well above the recent average of 48 percent for Swiss referendums.

Marcel Dettling, president of the Swiss People’s Party, said the initiative had been very popular in rural areas, but had been ultimately been defeated by urban voters.

“Not a single problem has been solved,” he said. “We will continue to push for sensible immigration.”