Switzerland lays out foundations for new EU deal

The Swiss government has announced a new strategy for stabilising relations with the European Union, which have hit a rocky patch in the last two years. Switzerland has targeted market access to electricity supply and food safety to complement existing deals in air transport, land transport, technical barriers to trade, agriculture and the free movement of people. + What is the EU framework deal? The Federal Council also wants enhanced cooperation in the health sector and a rapid return to the top tier of the EU’s Horizon Europe and Erasmus research and educational programmes. The aim is to integrate these aims into a new negotiating mandate in the autumn. But these deals should not come at the expense of Switzerland’s “essential interests” such as job and wage security, the government announced on Wednesday. Switzerland also wants to establish a system of settling disputes that is acceptable to both parties. + How will Switzerland and the EU solve their differences? The EU...