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He had probably already bought the book ‘Compact knowledge of social insurance in Switzerland’. Now the new federal councilor Beat Jans (59) had to exchange it for the ‘Asylum and Removal Procedures Manual’. Instead of the Ministry of the Interior (EDI) being led by the resigned Alain Berset (51), as hoped, the Basel resident has been head of the Ministry of Justice and Police (EDI) since Monday. But he will also be challenged there.
The crises in the world are increasing. How should Switzerland position itself when it comes to refugee flows and asylum applications? Jans has to find an answer to that; his predecessor Elisabeth Baume-Schneider (60) had waited in vain for it. These are also very specific questions: the House of Representatives recently decided that Jans must take a position on the question of whether Afghan women are generally recognized as refugees, as the State Secretariat for Migration (SEM) decided this summer.
Find jobs and accommodation for refugees
The new Minister of Asylum will then have to ensure that there are sufficient reception places for asylum seekers, without dissatisfaction in the cantons and municipalities getting out of hand. The decision of the Council of States last summer not to approve money for housing containers for refugees on army sites shows how difficult this search can be.
It is also up to Jans to decide what happens after 2025 with the S protection status for war refugees from Ukraine. And to create preconditions so that more Ukrainians can find work. It is still unclear how this will work. At the same time, authorities in Switzerland plan to eventually revoke S status.
There may be a lot that is unpredictable when it comes to refugees, but one thing is already clear: the SVP will continue to dwell on the issue. Especially after the election success in the autumn, the party is sure that this will be well received by voters.
Progress in EU negotiations
Jans should look forward to one dossier: EU politics. Before his election to the Federal Council, as district president of Basel-Stadt, he had repeatedly loudly criticized the state government for its hesitant attitude towards European policy. As the new Minister of Justice, he is now a member of the European Commission of the Federal Council. He will have it in his own hands to promote European policy.
But there is also a downside here: Jans is responsible for the free movement of people, which is very controversial both within the SVP and among the SP unions. “We expect that Beat Jans will help improve wage protection,” says Adrian Wüthrich (43), chairman of Travail Suisse. They would like to see bilateral contracts secured, but not at any price. Jans, who sold himself as a bridge builder between the Federal Council and his party, will also be needed here.
Ban Hamas and swastikas, keep E-ID
And then there is also legislative work ahead: together with Minister of Defense Viola Amherd (61), Jans must draw up a law at the end of February that bans the radical Islamic Hamas. The planned law could come into effect in about a year, predecessor Baume-Schneider said in November.
And speaking of bans: Parliament also wants one for symbols of violence such as swastikas. Jans now has to work that out too.
The introduction of an e-ID is already in parliament. The premise here is tricky. In 2021, voters at the ballot box said no to an electronic identity, the E-ID. A private solution was discussed at the time. Security issues regarding data protection were the deciding factor in favor of the Njet. It is up to Jans to make the new proposal bearable for parliament and, if necessary, the population.
Source:Blick
I am Liam Livingstone and I work in a news website. My main job is to write articles for the 24 Instant News. My specialty is covering politics and current affairs, which I’m passionate about. I have worked in this field for more than 5 years now and it’s been an amazing journey. With each passing day, my knowledge increases as well as my experience of the world we live in today.
