The Federal Council wants to start negotiations with the EU in March – the French nuclear expansion plans have now been presented live in Bern

The Federal Council wants to negotiate with Brussels on Switzerland’s future relations with the EU. He adopted the final mandate for this on Friday. Negotiations will begin as soon as the European Commission has its final mandate.

According to the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs (EDA), this should happen in March. On the Swiss side, chief negotiator Patric Franzen – he is deputy state secretary of the FDFA – is in overall charge. The individual parts of the negotiating package must be negotiated in parallel.

In consultations on the negotiating mandate, a large majority of the actors interviewed expressed positive views on the package approach to the negotiations, the FDFA writes. The Federal Council adopted many of the recommendations from the hearings and adjusted its draft mandate from December.

However, the state government did not take into account requests for changes in the field of electricity – the desired electricity deal was criticized in several ways during the hearings. The Federal Council mentions the exclusion of electricity production from the scope of the agreement and the renunciation of market opening measures.

In the electricity agreement he wants to ensure that consumers have the choice to remain in the protected basic supply, with regulated prices. The Federal Council wants to maintain the main state support for electricity production, especially from renewable energy sources.

When it comes to wage protection, the Federal Council wants to guarantee wages and working conditions. And when it comes to cost regulation, he strives for a solution that guarantees legal equality, taking into account the Swiss price level. (sda)