Swiss voters appeared to have rejected a proposal to deport foreign law-breakers in a referendum yesterday.
The plan to expel foreign residents guilty of anything from murder to speeding was proposed by the anti-immigration Swiss People’s Party (SVP), the country’s largest political movement with about a third of its parliamentary seats.
However, it faced opposition from activists and business leaders who said it would violate human rights and complicate relations with the EU, already angered by a 2014 vote that backed quotas on EU workers.
According to projections from Swiss broadcaster SRF, some 59 per cent of voters would oppose the automatic deportations.
The SVP collected the 100,000 signatures which were needed to start the referendum . – (Reuters)