Bitesize News
The news stories here are written for radio and designed to be read in under a minute.
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Beznau powerplant to stay until 2033
The nuclear power plant in canton Aargau, Beznau, is the oldest operating plant in the world and it will now run until 2033.
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'Humusation' raises legal questions
More are exploring the possibility of becoming compost after their death, but it’s proving to be a legal quagmire.
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Dangerous trees at Bioparc
The popular Bioparc in Geneva will be closed for the next few days as the canton has said the trees are dangerous and have ordered some felling.
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CHF 300 average on presents this year
We will spend CHF 300 on average on Christmas preset this year - the same as last year – but still down from 2022, when we spent closer to CHF 350.
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International aid falls to defence
Switzerland wants to spend more money on the army – and it’s international aid that will take the hit.
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OECD ups economic forecast for Switzerland
The economy is growing faster than expected – according to the latest figures from the OECD.
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Frontalier unemployment saved
The French government has abandoned plans to cut the amount of unemployment benefits to be paid to out of work frontaliers.
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Same-sex marriages expected to fall
Last year, nearly a 1,000 same sex couples married, according to government numbers. That down from 1,700 during the first year after the law changed in 2022.
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13th pension payment in Decembers
Parliament has voted to pay the 13th month pension payment once a year in December from 2026.
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Saturday Sharing programme collects record amount
Last weekend, the French speaking cantons of Geneva, Vaud and Fribourg got together to run the Saturday Sharing programme – and collected a record amount of food.
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Black Friday sales disappoint
Black Friday sales have been a disappointment – but sales during the week were up.
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Inflation up, slightly.
Swiss inflation rose less than expected in November, raising hopes of an interest rate cut by the Swiss National Bank next week.
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Shops will not open on 22nd December
Geneva shops will not be open on Sunday 22nd December.
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Woman hit by tram dies
The woman hit by a tram in Servette on Monday evening has died.
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Project to help elderly fraud victims
A pilot project has been launched in Neuchâtel to help elderly victims of fraud.
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Escalade Races this weekend - with a Green twist
The Escalade races are on in Geneva this weekend. Organisers hope a slightly modified schedule will mean a more relaxed and better spread-out weekend – and new rules will also make it more environmentally friendly.
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Trafigura and executives on trial for corruption
The commodity trading company Trafigura and three executives are on trial for alleged corruption.
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Trial for 1995 diplomat murder underway
A trial has started relating to a murder of an Egyptian diplomat in Geneva in 1995.
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Pedestrian hit by tram in Geneva
A woman was seriously inured last night after being hit by a tram in Servette in Geneva.
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Léman Express cuts border car traffic
Five years after the launch of the Léman Express, there’s a clear impact on the number of commuters using their car to get to work.
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HUG launches new blood drive
Doctors at the Geneva University Hospital are urging more people to come forward and give blood – especially those under 30.
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More power comes from the sun
More and more electricity used in Switzerland is coming from solar power.
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Police want more resources to fight cocaine smuggling
Swiss law enforcement agencies are demanding more resources to fight the smuggling of cocaine.
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Man dies in hunting accident
A man was killed by a gun shot during a hunting trip in canton Vaud on Friday.
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Heat pump sales stall
Swiss homeowners are returning to oil and gas heating and turning away from heat pumps, discouraged by the rise in electricity prices.
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Unexchanged bank notes means CHF 1bn to cantons
Unexchanged old bank bills means the Swiss National Bank can distribute CHF 1bn to the cantons.
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Bluetongue disease spreads in Swiss bison
Bluetongue disease is spreading through bison in Switzerland.
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France ends health agreement with Switzerland
France has ended an agreement with Switzerland that allowed highly paid executives in big French companies not to pay into the French healthcare system, but could optout and pay for Swiss Insurance instead.
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New car tax law could be decided in court
Judges may have the final say about the new Geneva vehicle tax which has shocked some car owners.
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Calls for social media minimum age
Following moves in Australia to bring in a minimum age for social media, support for the same policy in Switzerland is strong.
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Green party says axe the half price rail card
The Green Party says the half price fare card for the trains should be abolished and all prices should be set at the current half price level.
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Geneva has new tallest tower
The main construction work on Geneva’s tallest tower has finished.
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New P&R car park near airport
There are plans for a new Park and Ride car park close to the airport.
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Planning foul up scuppers tower
A planning snafu means a block of luxury apartments will not now be built – but students will get new accommodation.
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Federal Council urges 'no' to neutrality vote
The Federal Council is urging voters to reject the initiative on neutrality launched by the Swiss People’s Party.
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Geneva emergency paediatricians to strike
Geneva paediatricians working in hospital emergency rooms are threatening to start an open-ended strike from December in protest at the removal of an emergency allowance to compensate for weekend and overnight call outs.
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Govt considers bike tax
The government is considering a tax on bicycles.
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CERN Super Collider feasibilty next stage
Up to 30 drilling sites have been identified for checking to see if the ground will be suitable for the CERN Future Circular Collider.
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Early trains for early planes over Christmas
For those who need to get to the airport early in the morning in the run up to Christmas, Swiss Federal Railways will be running overnight services to Geneva airport.
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Many pay thousands for licence plates
The Geneva Cantonal Vehicle Office has raised CHF 118,000 by auctioning off licence plates.
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Army wants more money from budget
Parliament is about to discuss budgets – and many on the right-wing say there has to be more for defence in the wake of the Ukraine invasion.
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Patek Philippe warns staff to be careful after blast
The watch maker, Patek Philippe, is warning its employees to be careful after a second explosion seems to have targeted its staff.
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Morges shooting judged self-defence
After a three-year investigation, prosecutors in canton Vaud have determined the police officer who shot dead a man at Morges train station in 2021 was acting in self-defence.
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Big changes to train times next month
The new 2025 train timetable comes into force on the 15th December.
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Only pharmacies can sell the 'morning after pill'
The so called ‘morning after pill’ will continue to be sold only in pharmacies.
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What now for Lancy after billboard ban?
After the vote in Lancy to ban advertising in public spaces – authorities are now trying to figure out what comes next.
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Parcel bomb explodes in Grange-Canal
A parcel bomb exploded in a letter box in Grange-Canal yesterday afternoon. Geneva police sealed off a large section of the area.
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After autoroute rejection- what now?
A major debate is raging on what to do with the money that would have used to expand the autoroute network.
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Passerelle simply too expensive
It seems it was the cost which sank the idea of the pedestrian bridge running next to the Pont du Mont Blanc.
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Stolen cello recovered
A valuable cello stolen in Geneva a couple of months ago has been recovered, undamaged.
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Kebab shop owner fined for bad meat
A kebab shop owner in canton Sankt Gallen has been fined after customers fell ill due to infected meat.
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Move to make winter tyres compulsory
A national parliamentarian is preparing a motion that would make all car owners fit winter tyres.
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No, no - and yes. Federal votes
The A1 won’t be getting a new lane between Geneva and Nyon, landlords won’t have more power to evict tenants – but healthcare will be reformed.
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Geneva gets tax cut - but no bridge
In Geneva, unsurprisingly, the voters agreed to have a tax cut. It will work out at an average of 8.7% - but middle earners could be paying 11% less.
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What to do with autoroute cash?
Back to the federal votes – the political battle lines are already being drawn up on what to do with the CHF 5bn that would have been used on the roads.
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Cornavin running normally - except for track numbers
Trains are running normally from Cornavin this morning after the station was closed to all traffic over the weekend.
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Teams defuse WW2 bomb
Bomb disposal teams worked over the weekend to make safe a British World War II device that had been discovered on a construction site in Annecy last month.
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Gamekeepers shot wrong wolves
Gamekeepers in canton Valais have shot many of the wrong wolves.
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Heavy snow causes chaos
Heavy snowfall across central parts of the country brought chaos, cancelled trains, blocked roads and children building snowmen on the autoroute.
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Geneva car tax issue dominates Grand Council
Although it wasn’t on the agenda for last night’s meeting of the Geneva Grand Council, the issue of the new vehicle tax dominated proceedings.
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Franc strongest against euro
It’s good news for cross border shopping and frontaliers – the franc has reached its highest level against the Euro.
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SRG/SSR faces massive cuts
Are the days numbered for public service broadcasting?
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People now back nuclear power
A new survey suggests public opinion towards nuclear power has changed dramatically.
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4m e-vignettes sold
Four million people last year chose to forgo the sticky mess of a vignette on their car and bought an electronic one instead.
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Bee massacre in Solothurn
Asian hornets are decimating bee hives.
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Geneva blindsided by car tax chaos
The Geneva government has been blindsided by the effect of the new car tax and are now scrabbling to explain why.
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Govt backs foie gras
The Federal Council has come down firmly on the issue of foie gras.
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Fairmont to close for 3 yrs
The Geneva luxury Fairmont Hotel on the Quai Wilson will close its doors for renovation next month. The work could last for up to three years.
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Long term plans for atom waste dump
The time frames are immense – but plans have been revealed on a new nuclear waste storage site, which, by law, has to be viable for a million years.
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A12 closed after snow triggering crash
A section of the A12 autoroute running between Vevey and Châtel-St-Denis was closed over night following a multicar pile up, caused by the snow.
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Woman seeks life saving savior
A young woman in Geneva has launched a search for the woman who saved her life when she was swept away by the Rhone last spring.
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Car tax fall-out continues
The political fallout of the new Geneva car tax is continuing.
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Generic drugs too expensive
The price watchdog is criticising the price of generic medicines – noting the cost in Switzerland is far more than any other European country.
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Police release unpixelated images of suspects
Prosecutors in Bern have taken the unusual step of releasing unpixellated images of two men suspected of being involved in a brutal attack in the city last April.
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Cassis cancels event on protestor fears
The Foreign Minister, Ignazio Cassis, has pulled out of an event at the University of Fribourg after pro-Palestinian students called for a demonstration aimed at disrupting the event.
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New train carriages unveiled
Swiss Federal Railways have unveiled the carriages of the future.
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Geneva car owners shocked at tax hike
Despite voters agreeing to the move in March – some Geneva car owners are shocked at the new tax they will have to pay next year.
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Illegal satellite dishes on Russian Mission
The Russian Permanent Mission in Geneva seems to be strengthening its electronic eavesdropping.
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Cheaper drugs and new jet from December
There’ll be a few legal changes from the 1st December.
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Hopes of free trade deal with US
Some right-wing politicians hope that the new Trump Whitehouse will restart talks on a free trade agreement with Switzerland.
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Worries over Brazilian seeking Italian passports
The Swiss People’s Party is raising concern that a small Italian company is making life easy for thousands of Brazilians to obtain an Italian passport.
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Weather service closes comment section due to abuse
The Federal Meteorological Office is closing down the blog it’s been running on its website at the end of the month.
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Swiss turn their backs on religion
Religion is of little importance in Switzerland – and becoming more irrelevant.
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12 year old boy arrested after terror threats
French police in Thonon were placed on high alert after messages were posted on Snapchat suggesting the Jean-Jacques Rousseau School was to be attacked with bombs and threatening the principal with kidnapping.
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Major e-sport comp in Geneva cancelled due to abortion comment
It was supposed to be one of the biggest international e-sport tournaments in the country – but now it’s been cancelled because of a controversial abortion comment.
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Weather hits wheat crop
Switzerland has had the lowest wheat harvest for the last 25 years.
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Army to launch satellite network
The Swiss army is planning to have its own satellite network in the next few years – the first is due to be launched in January.
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Padel fans will get new courts
Fans of the sport Padel swill have more courts they can play on in Geneva.
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Rockfall alert could last for weeks
Residents in the threatened village of Brienz in Graubünden were allowed to visit their homes briefly yesterday.
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Win a weekend away in Interlaken
Courtesy of the Interlaken tourist office, you can win 2 nights for two people at the Hotel Metropole in Interlaken with fantastic views of the Jungfrau.
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Merry Christmas - we're taking a break
WRS normal programming back in January