Media Young politicians campaign against increased indirect press subsidies
The electorate should be able to express its opinion on the increase in indirect press funding by Parliament. A non-partisan committee led by Team Freiheit has launched a referendum against the amendment to the Postal Services Act approved by Parliament in March.
29.04.2025, 18:29
SDA
In just a few days, the self-imposed threshold of 10,000 pledged signatures and CHF 20,000 in start-up funding was reached, the committee wrote on Tuesday evening. It has until July 10, 2025 to collect the 50,000 valid signatures required for the referendum to take place.
The committee criticizes the fact that parliament wants to expand the promotion of press products despite the no vote on the 2022 media promotion bill. It claims this is a "senseless waste of taxpayers' money" and an "undemocratic disregard for the will of the people". Hundreds of millions of francs would be invested in an obsolete model.
In March, Parliament increased funding for the indirect promotion of printed newspapers and magazines by CHF 35 million to CHF 85 million per year via reduced delivery rates. However, it limited these subsidies to seven years. The aim is to make it easier for media companies to switch to digital formats.
The bill was initiated by Fribourg National Councillor Christine Bulliard-Marbach (center). She argued that when the people rejected the media package at the ballot box in 2022, it was undisputed that small, regional newspaper publishers deserved more support.
Team Freiheit, founded by Leroy Bächtold, is behind the referendum. According to its website, it first became politically active in 2021 with a petition for the lifting of the restrictions in place during the Covid-19 pandemic.
