Switzerland has decided not to sign a proposed agreement granting new European Union member Croatia access to the Swiss employment market, the Swiss justice ministry has said.
A spokesman told the Swiss news agency that the deal could not be signed «in current its form» after the February 9 vote in favour of curbing EU immigration.
The two countries had agreed the free movement deal in summer 2013, shortly after Croatia joined the EU.
Justice Minister Simonetta Sommaruga called Croatian Foreign Minister Vesna Pusic on Saturday to tell her that Switzerland would not be signing the agreement in its current form, because the vote has created a «new constitutional provision,» Sommaruga’s spokesman Philipp Schwander said. The two ministers talked about the consequences of the immigration initiative as well as the next concrete steps, he said.
Under the original agreement – which would have been subject to voters’ approval – Croatians would have had access to the Swiss job market, but non-EU member Switzerland would have been able to impose restrictions and set quotas for up to a decade after the accord had officially been implemented.
Sommaruga has also informed Brussels about the need for the deal to be revised, Schwander said, adding that Switzerland was keen to find a solution that did not discriminate against the Croatians.
Vote result
A week ago voters narrowly backed the «against mass immigration» initiative to bring back strict quotas for immigration from EU countries. Supporters had argued that free movement has put pressure on sectors such as housing, health and salaries.
Around a quarter of Switzerland’s population is foreign.
However, opponents, which included the government and many in the business world, said that free movement was important for the Swiss economy, particularly in terms of attracting skilled staff from abroad.
The EU, Switzerland’s largest trading partner, has said that it would reassess its relations with Switzerland «as a whole» in the wake of the vote.
The initiative gives the Swiss government three years to renegotiate its agreements with the EU.
The government has already indicated that it plans to draw up a strategy to implement the new rules outlined in the initiative by the end of June. A bill for parliament to approve is expected by the end of this year, so that the quota system can come into force by February 2017. Voters might still be asked to have the final word on the legal amendment.