GRÜNE FRAKTION DER BUNDESVERSAMMLUNG
GROUPE ÉCOLOGISTE DE L'ASSEMBLE
Waisenhausplatz 21
CH-3011 Bern
Ph: 41 31 312 66 60
Fax: 41 31 312 66 62
sylvie.ricci@gruene.ch

President of the Group: Therese FROSCH, MP
therese.froesch@parl.ch
www.theresefroesch.ch

 Members of the national parliament

The trilingual Green Party of Switzerland celebrated its 25th anniversary in May 2007, although some of the cantonal parties were founded in the 1970s, especially in French-speaking Switzerland. In the meantime the Swiss Greens have established themselves as the fifth largest party in the country; the 4 bigger parties are presently represented in the national governing body (the Bundesrat).

The Swiss have the honour of having the first elected Green MP to a national parliament: Daniel Brélaz from Lausanne, who was elected in 1979! In 1983, the elections brought 4, the 1987 elections 11, and the 1991 elections 14 Green MPs to the national Parliament. Four years later, in 1995 the Swiss Greens experienced their first setback, when only 8 Green MPs were elected and the percentage dropped from 6.1 to 5%. In the 1999 national elections the Swiss Greens were able to maintain their position resulting in the same number of seats (9 + 1 from another list) and percentage (5.0 %).  However, in the 2003 elections the Swiss Greens managed to win again. They increased their nation-wide percentage to 7.4 % and gained five seats. Yet the best result  was achieved in the most recent national election in october 2007. For the first time in their history, the swiss green reached almost the 10%-treshold (9.6%) with lists in 17 out of 26 cantons. In some cantons, especially in the French speaking part of the country, the local parties got well over 15%, (Geneva 16.4% and Vaud 14.3%). The highest score was achieved in the canton of zug with 17%. Also very successful green lists were in Bern, Basel-city and Basel Country.

An additional success-story is the gains of two seats in the senate (Ständerat) in the canton of geneva and vaud.

The green group in the national parliament now consistes of 20 members plus 2 affiliated people form other lists. Gender balance (10 women and 10 + 2 men) has been reached. The swiss national parliament has become greener than ever. The green group now holds 22 seats out of 200 in the Nationalrat and 2 out of 46 in the Ständerat. The strength of the group is that many new elected members are strong personalities with high competences in ecological issues. For the first time in Zurich a young green managed to get a seat.

Although the Swiss Greens had the highest increase of votes of the middle-left parties, the other  big winner in the latest elections  was unfortunately the right-wing People's Party, which has become the strongest party ever in Swiss history, now holding 60 of the 200 seats in the Nationalrat.

The Swiss Green have always been active also at the cantonal and municipal level. At the moment they hold more than 190 seats in cantonal parliaments and are in 6 cantonal executive councils (Bern, Basel, Geneva (2 out of 7), Vaud, Neuchatel und Nidwalden). Furthermore the Greens also habe executeive members in the city councils of Geneva, Lucerne, Bern, Zurich, Schaffhausen, Winterthur, Lausanne. In the latter, Daniel Brélaz has been the city mayor for several years now.

The identity of the swiss greens today is that on the one hand of a reform party looking for new majorities together wth other open-minded forces. On the other hand, due to the special political system, they considers themselves as an innovative opposition party being radically in favor of sustainable solutions for ecological problems.

In 1996, for the first time in their history, the Swiss Greens succeeded in collecting enough signatures for two nationwide initiatives (over 100 000 signatures each for the so-called Tandem-Initiatives). The initiatives included demands for the following: a secured old-age pension financed also with a tax on non-renewable energy (not only by a percentage of the monthly salary) and a flexible retiring age from 62 onward for both men and women. These two initiatives were voted on in December 2001 and even though they were turned down by the Swiss people, they provoked an interesting debate in parliament, the media and the public and have doubtlessly had an impact on Federal energy politics.

In the spring of 2007 the Greens started for the second time in their history an initiative. Together with all major Swiss environmental groups (including Greenpeace and WWF) launched the climate-initiative. The main target is a 30% reduction of greenhouse gas emissions in Switzerland by 2020 (as compared to 1990). For Switzerland that is a very ambitious target, as we have no gas or carbon power plants. The reductions will have to be made where they hurt most: traffic and housing. Over 150'000 signitures were collected and the initiative is now ready to be dealt with in parliament. . We do hope when it comes to the referendum we will succeed in amending the Swiss constitution so that it includes specific climate-protection targets.

In the year of 2005 the swiss young greens were founded on national level. Now in most cantons there are groups of young greens. In the spring of 2007 they started a campain in order to ban off-road vehicles from Swiss raods. The Swiss young greens are about to collect signitures for an initiative.

At the national party congresses, the Swiss Greens have had constructive debates on many major issues in economic, ecological and social fields. The debates have resulted in binding position papers that have been agreed upon. The main subjects are the following:

- Energy: Abandoning nuclear energy by 2050 with renewables and energy efficiency

- Education: new research policy in sustainabilty and for innovation and much more money

- Peace and security: Switzerland to play a much more active role in the world

- A new health policy: prevention and coordination rather than treatment)

- Agriculture: subsidies only for organic production

- European Union: Joining EU only if the transport policy over the alps is accepted and direct democratics rights are guaranteed,

- Democracy: full political rights for all foreigners that have lived  in the country for more than 5 years.

National Government:

Parties Represented in National Parliament :

Next National Elections:

Latest Green Party Election Results:

• National Election Year: 2007
  MPs: 20 + 1 Senator
  Total No. National Votes:
  % Gained: 9.6