00:00At a luxury lakeside hotel near Zurich, manager Martin von Moos is concerned.
00:07Switzerland is readying for a pivotal vote, whether to cap its population at 10 million
00:11people.
00:12Sunday's referendum, which has been likened by some to a Swiss Brexit, has alarmed businesses
00:17who fear an economic blow should the proposal succeed.
00:21There's concern it could damage relations with the European Union, Switzerland's biggest
00:25export market, and limit access to skilled labour.
00:30In Switzerland, for example, over 50% of our hotel staff are foreign nationals.
00:38If we no longer have access to these skilled workers, it would be very difficult to continue
00:42operating the hotel and restaurant industry in Switzerland at the current level.
00:47Meanwhile, backers of the cap, championed by the right-wing Swiss People's Party, say an
00:52expanding population is straining housing and infrastructure, like public transport.
00:57The population grew to 9.1 million by the end of 2025, up almost 2 million from 2002, when
01:04free movement between Switzerland and the E.U. was introduced.
01:08SVP lawmaker Ivan Pahoud said the cap would protect the country.
01:12We're not going to eliminate traffic jams overnight, but this will allow us to adapt road and rail
01:19infrastructure and build housing, but not at a pace that would ultimately prevent us from
01:26absorbing this massive influx of people.
01:29On the other side, however, Green Party lawmaker Daphine Klopfenstein describes the move as extremely
01:35dangerous and utterly xenophobic.
01:37Business critics point to the damage they say the population capped could inflict on one of
01:42Europe's most resilient economies. Many argue a host of newcomers have been entrepreneurs who
01:48developed the Swiss economy, citing companies such as Nestle and Swatch, who've been founded
01:52wholly or partially by foreigners. The issue seems finely balanced, with the most recent polls
01:58showing 47 per cent in favour and 52 per cent against.
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