Politics National Council committee still at odds over future army finances
The National Council's Security Policy Committee continues to disagree on how the additional expenditure for the armed forces should be financed. It has rejected the federal decree on the army's 2025-2028 payment framework.
13.08.2024, 17:54
13.08.2024, 18:06
SDA
The decision was made by 15 votes to 8 with one abstention, as reported by the parliamentary services on Tuesday. The no vote in the overall vote corresponds to a motion to the National Council not to enter the debate. The National Council will discuss and decide on the 2024 Armed Forces Dispatch in the fall session.
According to a statement from the National Council's Security Policy Committee (SIK-N), there was a "stalemate over the question of financing investments" in the army's payment framework. In July, the committee had already decided in principle to follow the Council of States and increase the payment framework from CHF 25.8 billion to CHF 29.8 billion.
However, there is still no majority proposal on how to compensate for this additional expenditure. By 12 votes to 12, with one abstention, and with a casting vote by President Priska Seiler Graf (SP/ZH), the committee finally decided not to provide for any compensation, but to create a temporary army fund of CHF 10 billion.
The Council of States, on the other hand, would like to save half of the CHF 4 billion in international cooperation. The remainder should be compensated in the Defense Department (15 percent) and in other parts of the Federal Administration (35 percent). However, this proposal was narrowly rejected by the SIK-N.
Nevertheless, the committee will ask the Council to discuss the two concepts - funds or savings proposals - should the Council decide to approve them, as was also stated in the press release.
