An international eye on Swiss news collated by Peter Hulm for NuseReal

December 2025

Swiss Senate opposes drastic cuts proposed by House to 2026 CHF300m funding earmarked for NGOs in International Geneva (LINK) 10 December 2025

Gotthard Base Tunnel work will delay Swiss trains in January: almost all trains will travel via the mountain route., taking an hour longer: exceptions are early and late connections and trains travelling between Germany and Italy (LINK) 10 December 2025

Geneva-based Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has cut 300 posts (LINK) 10 December 2025

— "Essential work has had to be eliminated, particularly in Colombia, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Burma, Tunisia and other countries."

Swiss Senate opposes drastic cuts proposed by House to 2026 CHF300m funding earmarked for NGOs in International Geneva (LINK) 10 December 2025

Sen. Warren presses Bessent and Swiss megabank UBS on private conversations on the bank's possible move to the U.S., exposing taxpayers to risk (LINK) 10 December 2025

SOS Méditerranée's rescue operations at risk through Geneva funding cuts: $3.3m short for 2025-2026 operations, over a quarter of its budget (LINK) 9 December 2025

— IFRC ending collaboration. Over the last ten years, nearly 33,000 people have died trying to reach Europe via the central Mediterranean. Since 2016, almost 43,000 have been rescued by the NGO.

Pfizer is reportedly shedding hundreds of jobs in Switzerland (LINK) 10 December 2025

Newly merged Swiss insurance group Helvetia Baloise to cut 2,600 of its 22,000 jobs (LINK) 9 December 2025

— The newly merged group plans to cut 1,400-1,800 jobs in Switzerland and 260-330 jobs in Germany between 2026 and 2028. In Switzerland, the cuts will mainly target group functions and back-office positions, with a consultation process set to begin in January.

UBS poised for fresh job cuts? Report flags 10,000 layoffs (9% of workforce) by 2027 in next phase of restructuring (LINK) 7 December 2025

Hundreds of passengers in turmoil across Switzerland as 10 cancellations and 141 delays (LINK) 6 December 2025

Swiss researchers glad to have rejoined EU science schemes but ponder damage of exclusion (LINK) 5 December 2025

Switzerland leads much of rich world in integrating immigrants, says the OECD (LINK) 5 December 2025

— At 77%, the employment rate among immigrants in Switzerland is well above the OECD average across its 38 member states.

50 Top Pizza gives L'Antica Pizzeria da Michele Luigia, present in Bellinzona (TI) and Geneva, prize as the best pizzeria in the world (LINK) 5 December 2025

Dozens of cars targeted by vandalizing robbers in downtown Lausanne (LINK) 5 December 2025

Swiss taxes on lottery winnings: the Federal Council intends to tighten the screws for winners: winners could be taxed according to their place of residence at the time of winning, curbing tax optimization strategies (LINK) 5 December 2025

Ex-Credit Suisse employee charged with money laundering by lending to Mozambican state-owned companies totalling over $2 billion (CHF1.6 billion): Credit Suisse and its successor company UBS are accused of failing to prevent the offence (LINK) 1 December 2025

— swissinfo: The loans were granted by the Credit Suisse Financial Group to three Mozambican state-owned companies in 2013. In 2016, they became known as the "Mozambique debt scandal". In 2020, the OAG opened initial criminal proceedings in this connection, which it is currently conducting against two people on suspicion of money laundering and aiding and abetting the bribery of foreign public officials.