EUU, Alm.del - 2013-14 - Bilag 397: Invitation til møde med Det Nationale Råd i Schweiz 29/4-14

Developments following the Swiss referendum on 9thFebruary - statement by European Commissioner LászlóAndor on behalf of European Commission to EuropeanParliament plenary sessionPresident,Honourable Members,Let me say a few words on the recent developments following the Swiss referendum heldon 9 February.As you know, the Free Movement Agreement between the EU and Switzerland, confers onEU citizens and their family members a right to move to Switzerland, to reside there andcarry out an economic activity as an employed or self-employed person (and of course thecorresponding right of Swiss nationals in the EU).Around 450 000 Swiss citizens exercise their right to live and work in the EU, and nearly1.2 million EU citizens live in Switzerland and more than 250 000 cross-border commutersfrom the EU arrive in Switzerland on a daily basis.Switzerland is deeply interconnected with its neighbours in terms of infrastructure, cultureand family links. The EU and Switzerland are bound by dozens of bilateral agreementswhich are giving Switzerland privileged access to the internal market, and are promotingexchanges, both commercial and personal, with the EU. All of these were concluded basedon mutual trust, interest and reciprocity.However, the popular vote of 9 February now calls the freedom of movement of personsinto question. The Swiss authorities told the Commission that they need time to reflect onhow this could be implemented. The Swiss Federal Council has up to three years toimplement the vote, so there is no immediate massive crisis. In the meantime, and I wantto be very clear on this, both sides must continue to fulfil all their obligations under theexisting agreements.Pacta sunt servanda.A deal is a deal, and selective implementationor even "cherry-picking" is not an option.The Commission stands ready to listen to the Swiss proposals which are now beingconsidered and which we haven't seen yet. The ball is in their court. Ourmarge demanoeuvre,however, is extremely limited.This core principle of the free movementof persons is a cornerstone of our relationship. It is a fundamental right. It is notsimply "negotiable", as some tend to believe.

It is very difficult to imagine how immigration quotas and national preference could bemade compatible with the agreement on the full free movement of persons we are havingwith Switzerland. Quotas are contrary to the principle free movement, and the principle offree movement is not only an essential part of the internal market, which cannot bedecoupled from the other freedoms, but also at the heart of our overall relations withSwitzerland. A package is a package! One can't have the cake and eat it.There are, however, some direct consequences of the amendment to the Swissconstitution introduced by the vote:Following this constitutional change, the Swiss Federal Council has informed us that it isstill evaluating whether it is in a position to sign the – already negotiated and initialled -Protocol extending the free movement of persons agreement to Croatia.The Commission has been crystal-clear that we expect this extension as planned,and that we cannot accept different treatments between our Member States inthis crucial field.The Swiss government indicated to us that they will have concludedtheir internal reflections on the Protocol by early April. We need to know this fast.Precisely to avoid such discrimination, the Council's negotiating directives for Swissassociation and participation in Horizon 2020 and Erasmus+ clearly link these relatedagreements to the "Croatia Protocol". Negotiations of these agreements will therefore notgo ahead until Switzerland formally concludes the Protocol, black on white.In the absence of an international agreement on determining the conditions forSwitzerland's association to Horizon 2020, Switzerland does not participate in thisprogramme as an associated country. This means that for 2014 calls for proposalsparticipation of Swiss entities will be in accordance with Horizon 2020 provisions governingparticipation of third country entities.As for Erasmus +, Switzerland has now missed the time for the 2014 grant awarddecisions. This means that in 2014, Switzerland will not participate in Erasmus+ on equalfooting with Member States as initially envisaged and its participation will be limited tocooperation activities as with any other third country.I want to make very clear that this freeze of negotiations is not a "punishment" or"sanction" for the expression of the Swiss electorate, but a logical consequence of thechoice Switzerland itself has made, a consequence which was very well-known before.Nobody can pretend to be surprised here. Of course, nobody has an interest in breakingoff dialogue, and we will continue to engage constructively in the hope that a solution canbe found rapidly. But we have to take into account the changed circumstances and thepossible non-conclusion of the Croatia Protocol.Business as usual is not an option.In the same vein, and I want to be equally clear: nobody on our side has an interest interminating the Freedom of Movement of People Agreement and invoking the guillotineclause linking the package of agreements concluded in 1999. Not even the proponents ofthe initiative are aiming for this. I therefore trust that the Swiss authorities will makeserious and significant efforts to try and square the circle, and that we will be able to sayin a year from now that relations with Switzerland are as close and friendly as they werebefore 9 February.