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Issues in relation to which referendums are mandatory at the national level

Switzerland

Switzerland

Answer
  • Constitutional amendments
  • Transfer of authority to international bodies
  • National sovereignty, national self-determination
  • Conflict between constitutional organs
  • Emergency federal acts
Source

Constitutional amendments: Articles 140(1)a, 140(2)a, 140(2)b;

Transfer of authority to international bodies: Article 140(1)b;

National sovereignty, national self-determination: Article 140(1)b;

Conflict between constitutional organs: Article 140(2)c;


 

Emergency federal acts that are not based on the Constitution and whose term of validity exceeds one year: Article 140(1)c.

 

 


 

FEDERAL CONSTITUTION OF THE SWISSCONFEDERATION

(Adopted1999; last amended 2013)

http://?www.?admin.?ch/?ch/?e/?rs/?c101.?html

Art. 140 Mandatory referendum

(1) The following must be put to the vote of thePeople and the Cantons:

  1. amendments to the Federal Constitution;

  2. accession to organisations for collective security or to supranational communities;

  3. emergency federal acts that are not based on a provision of the Constitution and whose term of validity exceeds one year; such federal acts must be put to the vote within one year of being passed by the Federal Assembly.

(2) The following are submitted to a vote of thePeople:

  1. popular initiatives for a complete revision of the Federal Constitution;

  2. popular initiatives for a partial revision of the Federal Constitution in the form of a general proposal that have been rejected by the Federal Assembly;

  3. the question of whether a complete revision of the Federal Constitution should be carried out, in the event that there is disagreement between the two Councils.

“26. Other very important instruments are sometimes submitted to mandatory referendum. Such instruments are, firstly, quasi-constitutional rules, such as, inSwitzerland, emergency laws derogating from the Constitution for more than one year and, secondly, instruments that involve a considerable limitation of sovereignty, especially in the context of European integration, such as…joining collective security organisations or supranational communities (Switzerland)…” (p. 6)

 

European Commission for Democracy Through Law (Venice Commission), “Referendums in Europe – An Analysis of the Legal Rules in European States,” 2005. Available at http://www.venice.coe.int/webforms/documents/CDL-AD(2005)034.aspx
 

Comment

Emergency federal acts that are not based on the Constitution and whose term of validity exceeds one year.

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