- Economiesuisse budgeted 1.2 million francs against the climate fund initiative.
- The initiative was rejected on March 8th with only 29 percent in favor.
- The high budget for a proposal with no chance is causing criticism in the Federal Palace.
- National Councilor Gerhard Pfister accuses the association of “burning” money.
You can do a lot with 1.2 million francs. Buying a house, for example – or fighting an initiative. That’s exactly what the economic umbrella organization Economiesuisse did, according to the official financial control figures. Where: These are budget figures, not the final bill.
The opponents of the climate fund entered the race with a total of just under 1.4 million francs. Those in favor of the joint initiative by the SP and the Greens raised just over 300,000 francs.
For comparison: In the SRG initiative “200 francs is enough”, opponents pledged almost five million francs and supporters pledged almost two million.
Only: A close race was expected from the start at SRG. When it came to the climate fund, it was relatively clear after the first surveys in mid-January that it had no chance and would hardly win any votes beyond the left-wing camp. Whatever happened, the yes share was only 29 percent.
Economiesuisse is raising eyebrows in the Federal Palace
The relatively large budget of Economiesuisse against the climate fund also caused some frowning in the Federal Palace, as 20 Minuten learned in several conversations.
On And he even wondered how long the association’s member companies would continue to watch.
It is clear that there is currently a lot of change at Economiesuisse. President Christoph Mäder is on the way out, his successor Silvan Wildhaber is not yet in office.
There was also a reorganization in the management, during which prominent names such as the head of foreign trade policy, Jan Atteslander, resigned.
This is what Economiesuisse says about the million dollar amount
When asked, the association said that they had until May to calculate the final costs for the fight against the climate fund. “What we can anticipate: Our actual effort is clearly below budget.”
“We do not provide any additional information,” it says. This obviously also applies to the 20 minute question about the reasons for the budgeted amount of millions.
How do you assess Economiesuisse’s approach to the fight against the climate fund initiative?
Stefan Lanz has been working for 20 minutes since 2021. He is a federal parliamentary journalist with many years of experience.