Parliament backs culture message
The National Council accepts a 3.4% increase in support for culture.
Following on from the Council of States, the National Council also took a decision on the Culture Message on June 2, 2015. It expressed its support for the Federal Council's cultural promotion concepts for the years 2016 to 2020, and rejected various proposals for increases or reductions. This is excellent news for the Swiss cultural landscape, as the National Council's approval was far from a foregone conclusion.
Overall, the Confederation will support cultural activities in Switzerland to the tune of around CHF 1.12 billion. This is almost 3.4% more than the current funding period, although most of this 3.4% percent is due to the implementation of the popular vote on Article 67a Youth & Music.
The National Council has adopted the modifications to the draft that the Council of States had issued in March. The sector is therefore ready for the final provision at the end of the summer session.
The SVP would have liked to send the Culture Message back to the Federal Council with a request to freeze spending at the level of the 2014 State Account. However, their request was rejected by 128 votes to 65. Only a few FDP and CVP MPs supported the SVP's proposal.
